EVERETT, Wash. – (Release from WSU Insider) Electronic dog collars, a toaster and a children’s bicycle don’t have much in common. But they were just a few of the items fixed by community repair specialists in January at the Repair Café in Everett.
The second Repair Café will be hosted by Snohomish County Extension’s Sustainable Community Stewards from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. on March 25 at the Washington State University Everett Campus, 915 N. Broadway, Everett, Washington.
The event is free and open to all Snohomish County residents.
When a household item breaks, the typical reaction is to throw it away and buy a new one. The Repair Cafes offers an alternate solution to landfills. Visitors bring their small broken household items and clothing to be fixed by the repair specialists. Common repairable items include lamps, laptops, clocks, vacuums, jewelry, electronics, bicycles, small kitchen appliances, toys, and more.
Repair Café organizers expect the upcoming event will be quite a bit larger than the first, where volunteers fixed 47 different items from 42 people and families.
“With Spring cleaning happening, people discover they have some broken stuff sitting around and aren’t sure what to do with it,” said Stacie Douglas, a sustainable community steward.
Sharing Wheels Community Bike Shop will help get bikes ready for summer riding. All-purpose fixers, including a sewing specialist and electrical repair specialist, will do their best to send everyone out with functional items.
“We don’t provide parts, and the event is first-come, first-serve, so coming out early is the best way to make sure you’ve got what you need to get the job done,” said Kellee Byard, WSU Extension Sustainable Communities program coordinator.
For more information check out WSU’s Sustainable Community Stewards website or Facebook page. Contact Byard for specific questions or to pre-register.