The Repair Cafe of the Hudson Valley and Catskills will be featured on NBC-TV’sThe Today Show on Friday, April 21, at 8:30 a.m. Earth Day watchers will see community members come together with tools, refreshments and a creative spirit to help each other fix “beloved but broken objects.” Repair Cafe volunteers will be on-site at 30 Rockefeller Plaza with a truckload of tools and objects to be fixed!
According to project coordinator Suzie Fromer, “We are thrilled to have this opportunity to share the Repair Cafe movement on such a big platform.” The Today Show discovered Repair Cafe through a local repair event in Tarrytown, one of 45 locations hosting regular fixing sessions for the community. In addition to capturing video and conducting interviews locally, the Today producers have invited a troupe of seasoned fixers to demonstrate what they do on the set during the Today Show broadcast.
Today producer Carlos Perez Beltran explains “It can be challenging to cover the climate crisis as most reports focus 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.”
The birthplace of the Hudson Valley Repair Café is New Paltz’ vibrant monthly event, held at the New Paltz United Methodist Church and now in its tenth year. Gardiner, Woodstock, Esopus, Kingston and Rondout Valley host additional Repair cafes.
International in scope, the Repair Cafe movement is the subject of several books including Repair Revolution (New World Library) co-authored by Hudson Valley Repair Cafe founder, the late John Wackman, and Elizabeth Knight. More information is available at repaircafehv.org.
Join the family! 
