homeWelcome, sign in or click here to subscribe.login
     


 

 

Business


Subscriber content preview

June 9, 2026

Broken speaker? Finicky zipper? Repair Cafes urge you to fix it instead of pitch it

  • The cafes and other efforts try to offer an alternative to mass-produced, disposable goods.
    • By MICHAEL WEISSENSTEIN
    Associated Press

    AP Photo/Michael Weissenstein [enlarge]
    Electronic repair coach Dan Casey and his mother Diane Casey work on a sound-mixing device at a Repair Cafe in New Paltz, N.Y. At these free events, volunteers with technical know-how help neighbors fix many household items.

    NEW PALTZ, N.Y. — On a drizzly Saturday morning late last month, the basement of the New Paltz United Methodist Church filled with old lamps, blunt knives, malfunctioning sound mixers and balky zippers.


     
    . . .


    To read this story in full login or purchase a subscription.



    
    Email or user name:
    Password:
     
    Forgot password? Click here.