PUTNAM REPAIR CAFE FEATURED IN PUTNAM COURIER
The Putnam Repair Cafe was featured in the Dec. 24th issue of the Putnam Courier in an article titled “Mr. Fix-it Visits Repair Cafe.” The text from the article can be viewed below as it is password protected on the website for the paper.
Mr. Fix-it Visits Repair Café
By Eric Gross
Wind chimes, broken lamps, toasters that browned only one side of a slice of bread, jewelry, vacuum cleaners and a variety of clothing needing stitching were brought to Mahopac Middle School this month for Putnam County’s initial Repair Café, hosted by Sustainable Putnam.
Sustainable Putnam Executive Director Joe Montuori explained: “Repair Cafés are free community events to which residents bring their broken but beloved items to be fixed by volunteers. So many of us have possessions we just don’t want to toss in the trash. We know they can be repaired, but don’t really know how to go about it. Whether it’s the cost, or the sentimental value it holds, some things are just too good to throw away. Repair Cafés are a shift to an earlier way of thinking about our stuff.”
Sustainable Putnam Director Sarah Wilson has run a Repair Café in Yorktown since July 2018. She urged Sustainable Putnam to launch its own: “A significant amount of work is involved but the rewards are many. We’ve had guests give us hugs, make donations, bring us baked goods and even shed a tear when a prized possession gets repaired.”
Wilson added: “We’re never sure how long a repair will take, but we schedule 30 minutes for each repair slot, which is usually enough time to diagnose and fix it. About 75 percent of everything that comes in the door gets repaired, but even when we don’t succeed, we are able to provide advice or referrals, enjoy sharing our skills with our neighbors, and take pride in doing our best to salvage it. Folks really appreciate the effort.”
Photos, Norma Pereira