Repair Café Returns
Repair Café Returns
Free appliance, clothing, jewelry, and toy repairs
Westerville's Repair Café is back this Saturday for the third time. Residents can bring their clothes, furniture, electrical appliances, bicycles, crockery, and appliances to be repaired for free by one of 22 volunteer electricians, mechanics, seamstresses, jewelers, and technicians. The café is hosted at The Point at Otterbein University and aims to bring together people for an afternoon dedicated to fixing broken items and building stronger community ties.
Sponsored by Sustainable Westerville, Otterbein University, and the Westerville Public Library, the Café will welcome residents with various household items needing repair. Volunteers will be ready to assist and guide people through repairs.
Bethany Vosburg-Bluem and Paul Wendel, the organizers of the event, hope that Repair Café will continue to encourage residents to reconsider the value of their possessions and consider repairs as an alternative to discarding them. Vosburg-Bluem stated in a news release, "If you repair a bike, a lamp, or a shirt together with a fellow community member, it helps create a stronger sense of community and connection. It also empowers people to be more mindful of what they keep and what they throw away."
Electronic recycling is new this year. To avoid getting stuck in the long line at the Household Waste Disposal event on Park Meadow, bring old batteries, unusable electronics, wiring and cables, electric toys, and printers to the Repair Café for quick recycling and disposal.
The Westerville Public Library will provide information about its Tool Library, which allows residents to borrow equipment for home projects. Local businesses will also contribute: Java Central will provide complimentary coffee, and Schneider’s Bakery will offer a variety of pastries for guests.
The Repair Café will be open from 9:00 AM to 12:00 PM at The Point, located at 60 Collegeview Road. Residents are encouraged to bring items they would like to repair and learn from the volunteers on-site. More information about the event can be found on Sustainable Westerville’s website.
Details
Attendees do not need to be Westerville residents to participate in the Repair Café. Each person can bring up to two repairable or potentially repairable items.
Arrive before 11:30 AM to allow enough time for evaluation and repairs. The process is interactive, with “experts” working alongside attendees to determine whether the item can be fixed.
Participants are encouraged to bring any necessary replacement parts, which will not be available on-site.
The event operates on a walk-in basis, so there may be several people working with an expert simultaneously. It’s not a drop-off service—attendees should remain and engage with others while repairs are being attempted.
If an item is not repairable and is electronic waste, it may be left at the recycling event held outside The Point.
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What a great article Gary! Thank you!