By Isabell Macrina
Everyone is guilty of having a few broken things around the house that they just can’t get rid of, either for sentimental reasons or stubborn ones. The Repair Café at Dover’s Caryl Community Center was just the place for people to bring these items for the chance of having them fixed.
Co-sponsored by the Westwood Environmental Action Committee, Dover Recycling Committee, and Sustainable Medfield, the café employs skilled volunteers, the “fixers” who donated their time and tools to help repair items people brought. They did their best to fix what they could, with a small parts store available for common items and parts.
People flocked into the community center, bringing all sorts of items like shirts with holes in them, jewelry in need of re-stringing or fixing a broken chain, many lamps, and even spare wheels for a wheelchair.
Steve Harte from Westwood Environmental Action Committee said this was their sixth time doing it across the different towns. They started in Westwood but seek to expand their reach through the other towns. This is one of the reasons they partnered with Dover Recycling and Sustainable Medfield, with the expansion into other towns, more people learn of Repair Cafés and have a chance to bring their items in to get fixed. While this was the first one in Dover, it was a crowded affair with each table and fixer being occupied. Quite a few people were fixing up lamps (apparently they take up a third of the items brought to these repair cafés) and taking the time to show their customers what they were doing while repairing. Beyond just fixing the items given, the fixers also made conversation with their patron. The connection between them and a more personal experience also aids the appeal of these cafés, rather than going through appointments and rushed businesses.
Repair Cafés like this extend the life of objects used in everyday life, promoting people to fix their broken appliances and clothing instead of throwing them away and replacing them. The next one is to be held on March 7th at the Mill Forge Makerspace (61 Endicott St., building 46) in Norwood from 2:00–5:00, so be sure to seek out those broken items you can’t bear to part with and bring them that way to give them a second life.
