Brent Collins – Finding a New Direction at the Olds Men's Shed

I entered the Olds Men's Shed right at the beginning when it started taking shape. A few of my friends who were already involved asked me to join, and before long, I found myself helping on the steering committee and acting as a board member. Honestly, it couldn't have come at a better time.

I retired in 2021, not by choice but because my body decided for me. After two open-heart surgeries and struggling with medical issues, I realized it was time to step away from my job as the Indigenous Services Coordinator at the college. Letting go wasn't easy. I had spent my life working hard and staying busy, and suddenly, I was adrift.

The Men's Shed was like a lifeline thrown to me when I needed it most.

This isn't a sad story; it's a happy one. I've struggled with depression since I was a kid. For 25 years, I used substances to try and manage it. In 1989, I decided I couldn't live that way anymore. I got clean, and while I was proud of that, the depression never really went away. It just changed shape. I didn't want to numb myself anymore; I wanted to find real ways to live.

Coming to the Men's Shed has been therapy for me. It gives me purpose. It gets me out of my head and into something real. I'm so grateful we set this up here in Olds because this place, the work, the laughter, the friendships, fills a space that so many men don't even realize they're missing until they find it.

That makes the Men's Shed so powerful and necessary: every man who comes here needs it for a different reason. Some are for the projects, some for the company, and some just for the chance to not be alone. We don't have to say it out loud, we know.

Working with my hands feeds my spirit. I've done many different jobs over the years—logging, log house building, timber framing, and there's something about working with wood that speaks to me on a level I can't fully explain. I even built a timber-frame house on the west side of Olds once, and the smell of sawdust still feels like home.

I have a little woodworking shop in my garage, and every time I step into it, I feel like the world gets quieter and makes a little more sense. Wood is a beautiful material: heavy and light simultaneously, full of infinite possibilities. It's creation. It's a connection. And being able to share that process here at the Shed, to build something real again, brings a tremendous amount of satisfaction and peace.

The Men's Shed fills my time and heart. It reminds me that even in the most challenging moments, there's still something good to build and worth showing up for.

And for that, I am truly grateful.