Santa’s helpers: Members of the Woodworkers of the Southern Peninsula Bert Bartlett, Laura Disbrey and Gerry Gilliland preparing some of the toys for charities to give away at Christmas. Picture: Yanni

ALTHOUGH there are a couple of months to go, finishing touches are being made to some of the 800 toys being readied for Christmas by Woodworkers of the Southern Peninsula.

Each year the woodworkers hand the toys over for charities to bring joy to needy children.

As well as working towards their toy quota, the woodworkers have this year moved from makeshift tin sheds in Besgrove Street, Rosebud to a purpose-built workshop at the Vern Wright Reserve, Elizabeth Avenue, Tootgarook.

The move made way for work to start on the Rosebud Aquatic Centre and created “an interesting and wonderful year” for the woodworkers, according to the group’s president John Bayliss. “We found ourselves plumb in the middle of the proposed new aquatic centre and the Mornington Peninsula Shire Council decided to move us to a completely new purpose-built workshop.”

The public is invited to the woodworkers’ open day at 11am on Saturday 12 October to inspect the new premises, check out items and toys made by members “and enjoy a free sausage”. And the Christmas toys? They will be handed over to the various charities on the first Saturday in December.

First published in the Southern Peninsula News – 8 October 2019