High River's hosting their first ever 'Repair Cafe'.
The Town of Okotoks has organized a few of these events in the past and some people in High River thought it was time we had our own.
Volunteer with the Friends of the Library in High River, Nick Salmon says he was inspired by the neighbours to the north.
"It was something that I kind of took inspiration from the Town of Okotoks. They've been running them for the past couple of years and I just kind of saw that High River needed it. We've got a lot of old appliances and old furniture out here that has some sentimental value and if we can keep stuff like that going then it also keeps it out of the landfill."
Salmon says it was a labour of love putting it together.
"It's a really exciting time. We've been working on getting this set up for about six months now. Just lots of logistics to plan out and everyone at the library's been fantastic about it. We put out a call to action both in the library and on Facebook and Instagram. People have been great about reaching out. We've got about six 'fixers' right now, plus myself and one other person, so the turnouts have been absolutely great."
Salmon says the skill sets of the people helping to fix your beloved items are impressive "We do have an appliance electrician, then we've got what I like to call 'generalists', stuff people who can just kind of fix anything. On top of that, we've got some folks good with furniture and sewing."
So, if you do have any small appliances, household items, bikes, clothes, teddy bears, toys or whatnot that could use some extra tender loving care be at the High River Library this Saturday (Sept. 28).
"It's going to be between 12 and 4 and pretty much you just bring your stuff in, sign the little waiver that says 'hey, you know we might not be able to fix this but we're going to try. And on top of that if you want, bring a donation to the Friends of the High River Public Library Society. And those donations are used toward funding events like this, getting new supplies for the library as well as some of the new and cool technology that you may have seen there... the glow forge, the 3D printer... I think we even got a few new VR headsets."
The 'Repair Cafe' runs this Saturday from noon to 4 p.m. at the High River Library.