October Repair Cafe News

With 14 Repair Cafes throughout our region, September was our busiest month this year. We were hosted at some beautiful new spaces including an organic food coop (Albany) and the Vassar Barns (Poughkeepsie). We also saw two new Repair Cafes start up--one in Highland Mills (Woodbury) and another in Copake (Columbia SE).

We'll be on Radio Kingston this Friday, 1-2pm


Tune in to to Radio Kingston this Friday, October 6th to hear Kingston Repair Cafe Organizer Melissa Iachetta and RCHV Coordinator Suzie Fromer. They'll be speaking with Erica Brown, the station's Community Engagement Manager, about the upcoming Kingston Repair Cafe on Saturday, Oct. 28th as well as the whole Repair Revolution here in the Hudson Valley.


You can listen on the radio at 1490AM or 107.9FM or online.

Pine Bush Repair Cafe Needs Your Help!

Live near Pine Bush? Help us Keep their Cafe Going!


As many of you in Orange County know, there hasn't been a repair cafe in Pine Bush in 2023. We just heard they are currently looking for a new organizer or team of organizers to restart it next year. They have all the resources--including a robust fixer list as seen here at their first cafe in 2020--and are just looking to pass the baton! If you're interested, please contact repaircafepb@gmail.com.

RCHV TV is Here!


We were so excited about sharing our zoom about how to start a repair cafe we decided it was time to start our own YouTube channel. We also compiled many other videos made by RCHV cafes into one of our 'playlists' so everything is now

viewable in one place. We also added all the Repair Cafe videos and interviews we could find by and about our beloved founder, John Wackman. If you want to take a look, you can do so here.

Repair Coach Corner

Rafael Delgado, Jewelry/Watch/Clock Repair Coach

Cafes: Rhinebeck, Montgomery--Fishkill???


Our repair coaches represent an incredibly talented group of craftspeople. And while some of our skilled fixers are actually hobbyists in their chosen arenas, others are accomplished professionals in the fields they fix in. Rafael Delgado is an excellent example of this latter kind of repair coach. For over 35 years, Rafael has been a highly respected manufacturer of high-quality watches and fine jewelry. He has worked for such prestigious houses as Hermes, Bergdorf Goodman, Bulgari, Kai Yin Lo, Saks Fifth Avenue and Angela Cummings. He also served as the Chanel Repair Center for over 30 years. As a result, he is an expert in all kinds of Chanel products as well as highly skilled at pearl and bead stringing (see above for a photo of him teaching another jewelry repair coach some tricks for faster pearl knotting at the recent Montgomery Repair Café).


Rafael also owns Watchpital Studios in the Village of Fishkill. His shop sells fine jewelry and 'Kit-Kat' clocks along with his very own watch line. Why is it called ‘Watchpital?’ Because Rafael also considers his shop a “watch hospital!” If you’re in Dutchess or adjoining counties Watchpital is a great place for you to bring your complex jewelry, watch or clock repairs that can’t be fixed within the time and confines of a café. We often get asked whether repair coaches can hand out business cards when they’re volunteering to fix at our repair cafes and our answer is a resounding yes! We love the natural synergy that springs up between repair shops and our cafes and we very much want to encourage repair over replace in every modality. We are passionate about growing the circular economy and that definitely includes supporting existing repair shops in our communities.

 

And speaking of passionate, one of the things Rafael REALLY wants to see is a repair café in Fishkill, but he could use some volunteers to help get it up and running. So if you are interested in helping start a Fishkill café, have a more complex jewelry, watch or clock repair question or if you want to see where Rafael may be next, feel free to email him at watchpital@msn.com. You can also catch him singing and playing acoustic guitar at Bert’s Hideaway on Wednesdays and once a month at Athena Greek Taverna, both in Fishkill.

Fall is a busy time for all here in the Hudson Valley, and that includes RCHV! Get your pumpkin carving tools sharpened, your Halloween costumes mended or celebrate International Day of Repair (Oct. 21) at one of 13 repair cafes throughout the Hudson Valley, Catskills or Capital region this October.

October 2023 Repair Cafe Calendar

For more information, visit our online calendar.

Help us keep Repair Cafe Hudson Valley going strong! Please consider donating at the link below. Donations go to our fiscal sponsor, the 501(c)3 Sustainable Hudson Valley, but will be earmarked for RCHV if you make a note saying it is for Repair Cafes. Thank you!

Donate to RCHV

RCHV in the News


"It May Take a Village, but Sometimes it only takes Neighbors Reaching out to Help" (Warwick Repair Cafe), Warwick Advertiser, September 18, 2023.


"Climate Solutions Week 2023: A Chorus of Action, September 16-24"(RCHV), The River, September 15, 2023.


"Throw it Away? No Way" (Tusten Repair Cafe), The River Reporter, September 14, 2023.


Sabrina Artel's 'Trailer Talk' Podcast on WJFF Radio Catskill, Jill Padua (Tusten Repair Cafe) and Suzie Fromer (RCHV), September 11, 2023 episode.

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