On Saturday, Nov. 30, Langley Environmental Partners Society (LEPS) will sponsor their last repair cafe of the season at the Murrayville branch of the Fraser Valley Regional Library at 22071 48 Ave.
From 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., people are encouraged to bring anything that needs fixing, with volunteers on hand to repair bikes, clothing, toys, and more.
Supplies will be provided but if a repair requires a specific piece or part, people are asked bring it with them.
Langley Senior Resources Society centre is hosting a repair cafe until 2 p.m. pic.twitter.com/6ykEJChpv7
— Langley Advance Times (@LangleyTimes) October 19, 2024
It is just over a month since the last LEPS repair cafe, scheduled on Oct. 19, which turned out to be during the first atmospheric river of the season, and election day in B.C.
While attendance was less than expected as a result, there was still work for the volunteers.
"It's a little slow," conceded Garima Wilson, LEPS environmental educator, "but people are coming out."
It was volunteer Sally Mills third LEPS repair cafe, at work on a top for a visitor.
"She needs it taken in," Mills explained
The Langley City resident who has ben sewing for "50-odd" years explained the appeal of being a reapir cafe volunteer as she guided fabric through her sewing machine.
"Helping, actually," Mills told the Langley Advance Times.
"Being able to do things for people who can't afford it elsewhere because it's so expensive to go to a store."
Cloverdale resident Duane Rose, a regular at repair cafes in Maple Ridge, South Surrey-White Rock, Mission and Abbotsford, is a former apprentice mechanic who finished up teaching high school mechanics before he retired.
"I like meeting the people, first of all," Rose said.
"I like the projects, and I I always learn something."
Often, Rose will take an item home to do some research.
"I'll say to people, I can fix it, but I can't fix it here, but if you'll let me take it home, I'll bring it back to the next one," Rose recalled.
"I've done that with a stained glass window. I did it with a tricycle. But the most interesting one was a little accordion, that was missing one of the keys. And I have a 3D printer, so I took it home and I measured it up, and I printed a replacement key and installed it. And it turned out that this thing was over a 100 years old, and [the owners] were very happy to have that."
Repair Cafes, got their start in the Netherlands in 2009, as part of a grassroots movement that aims to reduce waste, overconsumption, and planned obsolescence.
Langley Environmental Partners Society is a non-profit, charitable organization that partners with local environmental stewardship groups with a goal of “protecting and restoring the environment through education, cooperation and action” and fostering a balanced approach to sustainable living.
More information can be found online at https://www.leps.bc.ca.
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