Summer Tuesday Farmers’ Market Hosts August 11 Repair Café

COOPERSTOWN—Next Tuesday, August 11, the Cooperstown Repair Café will be held during the Summer Tuesday Cooperstown Farmers’ Market.

Volunteer expert repair coaches will be on hand to evaluate and try to fix lamps, appliances, bicycles, and items in need of mending. According to a press release, advice on fixing things and upcycling clothes will be available, too. The Repair Café is not able to do alterations, organizers pointed out. The repairs will be done free of charge; materials needed to fix items may be available to purchase. The farmers’ market is open from noon to 4 p.m., and the repair café will be held from 1-4 p.m.

“With each item repaired you are saving a little bit of plastic, a little bit of oil, a little bit of mining and a little bit of landfill space. And if you think about that, you will feel a little bit better,” said Steve Davis, who volunteers as a repair coach for the Cooperstown Repair Café. “Many people bring in an item that has a long history in their family. So, with a repair you also save the memories that come with it.”

Keith Gulla of Cooperstown brought a vintage tote to a recent Repair Café.
“The Repair Café gave it a little love and now it’s ready for its next chapter,” Gulla said.

A September 8 Repair Café is planned as well.

“Give your things a second chance on the second Tuesday of the month,” said Peg Odell, program manager at Otsego 2000.

Different items can be repaired at each Repair Café. For the listing of items you can bring to be repaired on a specific date, see //otsego2000.org/repaircafe.

The Repair Café is a collaborative program of Otsego 2000, which runs the farmers’ market, the Otsego County Conservation Association, and the Otsego Land Trust. The Repair Café concept was developed by Martine Postma in the Netherlands in 2009, and now there are more than 3,800 community-run Repair Cafés around the world.

The Cooperstown Farmers’ Market, located at 101 Main Street in Pioneer Alley in Cooperstown, is open on Tuesdays from noon to 4 p.m. in July, August, and September as well as Saturdays year-round from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. For more information on the Cooperstown Repair Café, or to volunteer to be a repair coach, see //otsego2000.org/repaircafe or call Odell at Otsego 2000, (607) 547-8881.