(More) Local History by Dede Terns-Thorpe

Very bright! My friend Jackie, and my husband, Ed Thorpe

On Saturday, January 31st, my husband, friend and I took a ride to the Catskill Firehouse for an unexpected treat. Online we saw an advertisement about the Catskill Repair Cafe.  Repair Cafes are community initiatives that promote repairs as an alternative to our throwaway culture. People can bring their broken items to the cafe to be fixed FOR FREE by volunteers who specialize in various fields. Over 70 cafes exist in the Hudson Valley, Capital Region,, and North County. The Repair Cafe was born in Amsterdam in 2009, and there are now over 2,500 cafes worldwide.  The first cafe in the US was organized in New Paltz, NY by John Wackman in 2013.

It was a fun and highly organized experience. We walked into the firehouse (near Catskill's Walmart) to find a coffee pot and some baked goodies by Bonni Bakes Catskill to enjoy while we filled out a short registration form. More than one item is allowed to be fixed, but wait times vary depending on how many others are waiting at a particular station. After filling out the paperwork we were given a number and walked to the waiting table associated with our fix.  I brought a hair dryer to the electrical table and a piece of plexiglass to be cut down by Tim who mainly does wood repairs and gluing.  My girlfriend brought in three vacuums and while she waited a short while for the third one to be finished, she was able to walk out with all three in working condition. This particular repair cafe fixes approximately 80% of the items brought into each event and all for just a donation. I found out that in 2024 alone the region's 71 repair cafes held over 150 meetings and made hundreds of repairs with around 7,500 items -- about 180 tons of carbon--saved from landfills. 

Jackie Arsenuk, Coordinator of this particular cafe, said that most of the fixers and administrative volunteers arrive at her doorstep via word-of-mouth, social media, radio, and press releases.  

While waiting for our plexiglass to be cut we were approached by Jackie and asked if we were happy with our experience so far and if we needed help with anything. To top it all off, on our way out we were asked if we were happy with the repairs and had a photo taken with our now usable item and big smiles on our faces. I want the organizer, Jackie, to know that since I returned home that day I’ve been putting every broken item I find into a box to bring to the next repair day, likely to take place in June of this year. Jackie said a date will be selected soon.

The Catskill Repair Cafe's fourteen fixers offer repairs for: electrical/mechanical items, bikes, clothing, zippers, knife/tool sharpening, and wood items. Technology services include minor repairs, data wiping, and software guidance. People have the option of leaving their wiped technology for recycling or donation. The most common items brought in are electrical (lamps and vacuums) but occasionally we see unusual items such as an old-fashioned milkshake machine, a vintage flip side toaster, and a 1964 Texaco North Dakota Oil Tanker model ship which our fixer Collin used his soldering kit to fix. The knife/tool sharpening station is another busy one.

So, bring your broken, but beloved items to the cafe this summer!  The cafes are held four times a year on Saturdays from 10am-2pm. You can like them on FB and Instagram at "Catskill Repair Cafe" or email Jackie to get on the email list at rccatskill@gmail.com. Their website is www.repaircafehv.org/catskill

New volunteers are welcome, especially jewelry, shoe, clock, and musical instrument fixers. 

I thought this was an exciting project to pass along. It shows a warm touch to today’s world.

Thank you to the volunteers. Dede Terns-Thorpe/Hunterhistorian@gmail.com