Shane Cossey, healthcare assistant at mental health and addictions rehabilitation unit Stanford House, and clients/tangata whaiora are learning new skills and supporting the wider community by bringing back to life abandoned and broken bicycles.
Shane started at WDHB in December 2019. Before this, he worked for retail display manufacturers GDM Whanganui and as a painter.
Shane has assumed responsibility for running the Stanford House workshop as one of the programmes where clients/tangata whaiora have the option to do carving, welding, woodwork and more. The upcycling bicycle project will be added to the activities.
Shane and clients/tangata whaiora collect unused bikes from the community and repair them, using parts from other bicycles they have collected and repaired. Once brought back to life, the bicycles are donated to children and adults in the Whanganui community.
To date they have rescued, restored and donated more than 100 bicycles.