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John Abbatangelo
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Bike/Electrical/Mechanical/
Woodworking Repair Coach
Cafes: Croton, Cortlandt, Mahopac, Middletown, Rivertowns, Rockland
If you have been to one of our repair cafes in Westchester, Rockland or even Orange County you may have met John Abbatangelo. He could be working at one of several different stations though because, as he says, âI do a little bit of everything!â Like many, he first learned repair as a child working with his father, but, as heâs one of the younger coaches in our network, that wasnât quite as long ago as it was for others. âWhen I was younger, I helped my dad with small mechanical and electrical repairs. I have soldered from a young age, too. I also have a lot of experience putting together electronics (unfortunately, usually by trial and error).â He also loves to learn new things, so his already long list of repair skills is always growing. His latest addition is bikes, which he recently added to what heâll do at a cafĂ© after doing many such repairs for himself and others. He notes that while bike repairs at a cafĂ© âcan be challenging because sometimes people will need brand new parts that can be expensive or not available at that cafe,â luckily most times all that is needed is a simple tune up.
John holds degrees in Civil and Environmental Engineering from Manhattan College and works at a local consulting firm as a licensed water and wastewater engineer where much of his work involves designing sewer system improvements. He also has a background in environmental science and water chemistry and volunteers with several Rockland County Soil and Water Conservation District Programs. That is actually how he got involved with repair cafes: County employee and Rockland Repair CafĂ© organizer Kathy Galione recommended he attend one as an assistant. âI was pretty excited since I had never heard of Repair Cafes and thought it would be a great way to meet new people and learn new skills.â
He was right, and he now does as many cafes as he canâwhich isnât easy since he also has âmore activities and hobbies than I would like to admit to. Mostly I try and focus on activities where I can build on my learning and help preserve old things (hence my attraction to volunteering with Repair Cafes). I also enjoy being outdoors, hiking, bike riding, photography and cooking interesting things.â Heâs also a licensed amateur radio operator which he says has helped him out at Repair Cafes more than once. âWe had to study basic electronics and radio frequency circuits to pass our licensing exams. There is a lot of tinkering in amateur radio so I at least knew which tools to use on different electrical applications, such as a multimeter. If I were to open the body of a radio or stereo system, I would have a general idea of where all the major circuits were and the differences in electrical components. By listening to the sound coming out of a radio, I may be able to diagnose what's wrong. I can also inspect components for damage to see where a failure may have occurred, such as a swollen battery cell or burn marks on a wire.â
I asked John what some of his most memorable cafe fixes were and there was one item of great personal importance to the guestâs motherâa shattered porcelain picture frame he recalls painstakingly putting back together again with epoxy and super glue. Another repair cafe highlight he recalls was a bit more utilitarian. He made that cafe guest particularly happy just by getting her grocery cart back in action with some JB Weld. Often those practical fixes are just as important for the guestsâand memorable for the fixersâas the sentimental ones.
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