Volunteers from Oak Park will be repairing items for free later this month, at the Austin Branch Public Library. Austin is Oak Park's adjacent neighbor to the west.
The volunteers are part of the Repair Café, a nonprofit organization that first got its start in Amsterdam. The idea of the group is to encourage people to turn to local repair shops and have their small items fixed, rather than throwing them away and filling up landfills. Bringing in items to have volunteers repair them also gives people a chance to get to know one another.
Volunteers repair household items like mixers, toys, tables, clocks, and lamps. Even old-fashioned record turntables have been repaired by the skilled workers.
McLouis Robinet helped organize the repair event, and says many of those who volunteer are seniors. They, like him, have a lifetime of experience that has given them a range of mechanical skills they can use to help others.
One repairman, Alan Fox, got started tinkering when he was eight and took a watch apart. He did not get it to work, but he never lost his interest in fixing things, and became a cabinet maker. Now he can repair appliances and furniture.
The Repair Café will take place from 10:00 am until 1:00 pm this Saturday, July 27, at the library in Austin, located at 5615 W. Race Street. Flyer printing is often used to publicize events like this.
