Repair Cafe
Our first ever Repair Cafe was held on Monday 7 September 2020, see what GWN7 News had to say about it...
What do you do with a broken object? A bike when the wheel runs out of tyre? Or with a sweater full of moth holes? Toss it? No way! Take it to the Repair Cafe:
The first Repair Cafe was held at the Wellness and Respite Community Centre, 1A Edwards Street, Manjimup on Monday 7 September 2020.
Everything centred on making repairs. Starting from 10am and ending at 1pm, various volunteer repair experts were be available to help make all possible repairs free of charge. Tools and materials were also be on hand and light refreshments available.
People visiting the Repair Cafe bought along their broken items from home. Clothes, bikes, toys, crockery... anything that is broken is welcome and can hopefully be repaired.
By promoting repairs, Shire of Manjimup Home and Community Care wanted to help reduce mountains of waste. This is absolutely necessary as we throw away piles of stuff in Australia, even things which practically have nothing wrong with them, and which could easily be used again after a simple repair. Unfortunately, many people have forgotten that they can have things repaired. Repair Cafe wants to change all that.
Repair Cafe is also meant to put community members in touch with each other in a new way and to discover that a lot of know-how and practical skills can be found close to home. If you repair a bike, a CD player or a pair of trousers together with a previously unfamiliar neighbour, you look at that person in a different light the next time you run into them on the street. Jointly making repairs can lead to pleasant contacts in the community.
Repair Cafes can save money and resources, and can help minimise CO2 emissions. But above all, Repair Cafe just wants to show how much fun repairing things can be, and how easy it often is.
Repair Cafe International Foundation
The Repair Cafe concept arose in Amsterdam, the Netherlands, in 2009, and was formulated by Martine Postma, at the time a journalist/publicist. In 2010, she started the Repair Caf International Foundation. This foundation provides professional support to local groups around the world wishing to start their own Repair Cafe. The foundation also supports the Repair Cafe in Manjimup.
The Repair Cafe is now held at Manjimup Family Centre.
