After the 2022 floods, many Lismore and Northern Rivers homeowners learned new trade skills to rebuild their homes.

There have been a number of workshops from various support groups that have been running for the last 2 years. Resilient Lismore, arguably the biggest support group in this space, is inviting community members to hone some carpentry skills.

The ongoing interest shown by people wanting to improve their skills so they have the confidence to finish off their homes has prompted Resilient Lismore to run a series of workshops.

Emma Newman, the events coordinator at Resilient Lismore, said that their outreach teams monitor what work people have completed and what still needs to be done.

“Our 'Repair to Return Crew' engages people interested in doing some of their own work or interested in helping people do their work. The trimmings, the architraves have come up quite a bit," said Emma.

People may be familiar with the “Two Rooms” project - it has been rebranded 'The Repair to Return Team' to keep up with the current recovery phase.

“We're renaming it 'Repair to Return' because it's beyond the Two Rooms now, and it's repairing enough to return comfortably in the house.

“Things like architraves and painting and plastering are the things that the owner will have to organise in their own house. So that's where our workshops could be, helping them or other people to do those finishes.”

This training is being provided at no charge. For free. But you will have to register.

Resilient Lismore can also help provide the tools you need, "When you are ready to do some projects at home, you can also borrow tools from the Resilient Lismore Tool Library. Just come into the Hub or call 0455 218 692 to find out more." 

Similar workshops have been offered before and they have been successful in helping many people gain independence and self-reliance. 

The Resilient Lismore team wants to know, “Have you just started learning carpentry? Want a bit more supervised practice? Maybe you are ready to build something small with some help before you embark on your own project. 

“The Resilient Lismore is offering Project & Practice Sessions for participants to gain more experience to make something practical.”

 If you are considering whether you should or can do this work, here is some feedback that might help you overcome concerns:

"These are life-changing skills I wish I had been taught decades ago. I so enjoyed the sense of community as we all learnt together. Tony and Emma created such a fantastic learning environment. I love the quote:

 "I wonder what the world would be like if we measured success by how safe people feel in our presence". 

“I felt completely safe with Tony and Emma at the helm." 

The appreciation for learning a new skill resounds:

 "So much! that I can play with the tools and problem solve safely. I don't need to be scared of tools or assume I can't use them." 

 "Competence & confidence to take practical skills to my family." 

This session will be followed by three more next term, so if you can’t make this one, make sure you put your name down for next term.

Here are the details of the session:

Project & Practice Session  

Wednesday, 18th September  4.45-7.45pm  

Resilient Lismore Hub 215 Keen St, Lismore  (cnr Keen & Conway Streets)  

Register for the workshop or make enquiries using these methods:

- call/text Emma on 0411 967 690 

- email events@resilientlismore.org.au  

- Register directly at this site

- or go to the Resilient Lismore website

To receive the first announcements of upcoming workshops, please register your interest here, where you can also describe what you want to learn.