Women in isolated town head to the shed to fight loneliness

In the isolated Snowy Mountains town of Talbingo, where residents can go days without face-to-face contact, a group of 13 women is actively fighting loneliness. They gather at the Talbingo Trading Post, which now doubles as the temporary home for the Talbingo Women's Shed Association.

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Often a week would go by and I wouldn't have talked to anyone except on the phone.

Di O'Keefe, a resident for 40 years, shared her personal experience with isolation after her husband's death. "Often a week would go by and I wouldn't have talked to anyone except on the phone," she said, noting her family's concern about her lack of social interaction. Talbingo, established in the 1960s for Snowy Mountains Hydro-Electric Scheme workers, has seen a decline in community events and services, leaving women with "nothing on offer anymore."

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My family were, in fact, concerned because I had no social [face to face] contact.

Mary Bargery, who moved to Talbingo in 1970, echoed the sentiment. She observed that many elderly women in the town, who moved there for the Snowy Scheme and are now widowed, face significant isolation. "A lot of us are actually choosing to be here," she stated, emphasizing that the Women's Shed is a crucial lifeline.

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There's nothing on offer to women anymore.

Debbie Midson, the secretary of the Women's Shed, expressed her primary goal: to ensure no woman in Talbingo feels alone. "I would hate to think that Talbingo could end up like Sydney or Melbourne, where an elderly person passed away in their house and nobody knew until weeks and weeks afterwards," she said. The group's monthly meetings provide a much-needed space for connection in a community where such opportunities have dwindled.

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A lot of us are actually choosing to be here.