Repair Cafe of the Hudson Valley/Catskills featured on ‘Today’

Posted 12/31/69

NATIONWIDE — The regional repair movement got a boost when the “Today” show featured an interview on April 21 with representatives from Repair Cafe of the Hudson …

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Repair Cafe of the Hudson Valley/Catskills featured on ‘Today’

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NATIONWIDE — The regional repair movement got a boost when the “Today” show featured an interview on April 21 with representatives from Repair Cafe of the Hudson Valley/Catskills.

The spot can be seen at www.today.com.

Katie and Pete Marchetto, organizers of the Hurleyville (NY) Repair Cafe, were present at the show. Their Repair Cafe, sponsored by and located at the offices of Catskill Mountainkeeper, offers services from mending clothing to sharpening knives to fixing electronic and mechanical devices. 

“I hope that this on-air event will inspire more folks to fix their busted stuff at our next event on May 13,” said Marchetto.

In Sullivan County, NY, the westernmost Repair Cafes in the network include Tusten, Mamakating, Livingston Manor and Hurleyville. 

“The Today Show” discovered Repair Cafe through a local repair event in Tarrytown, NY. In addition to capturing video and conducting interviews locally, the “Today” producers invited a troupe of seasoned fixers to demonstrate what they do right on the set during the broadcast.

“Today”’s producer actually pursued Repair Cafe as part of his climate change beat. Carlos Perez Beltran said, “It can be challenging to cover the climate crisis, as most reports focus on weather events and catastrophic projections, but stories of resilience and community, such as this one highlighting Repair Cafes, can really connect with an audience eager to hear about effective action and adaptation. This was a wonderfully wholesome story."   

In 2022, waste was 12 percent of New York State’s carbon footprint, according to Gov. Kathy Hochul’s 2022 State of the State address. Repair Cafe of the Hudson Valley and Catskills has kept over 3,000 items out of the landfill—which for the region is located at Seneca Meadows, hundreds of miles away.  

According to project coordinator Suzie Fromer, “We are thrilled to have this opportunity to share the Repair Cafe movement on such a big platform. There are a lot of cafes in the U.S already, but we really hope this inspires people in every state to start them.”

The Repair Cafe has taken off as a community project with distinctive commitment and creativity on the part of volunteers. Participants with repaired objects are photographed with colorful “I Fixed It!” signs. Cafes are held at libraries, church basements, senior and community centers, and sometimes at maker spaces with tool libraries and other equipment to encourage more crafty behavior.  

International in scope, the Repair Cafe movement is the subject of several books, including “Repair Revolution” (New World Library), coauthored by Hudson Valley Repair Cafe founder, the late John Wackman, and Elizabeth Knight, who appears in the “Today” clip.  

More information is available at repaircafehv.org.



Repair cafe, Repair Cafe of the Hudson Valley/Catskills, Repair Cafe Tusten, Today show, sustainability

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