in si de ha lto n. co m O ak vi lle B ea ve r | T hu rs da y, M ay 2, 20 19 | 36 Start planning your dream vacation with hand-picked travel deals and inspiration just for Canadians Visit THISWEEK: The 2003 disappearance of Pamela Holopainen has left her family longing for answers. Always online first at InsideHalton.com/coldcase UNSOLVED: ONTARIO COLD CASES Oakville Public Library hosts its first-ever Repair Café, in partnership with Halton Environmental Net- work, the Town of Oakville and Sheridan Mission Zero. The café features "fix- ers" - handy volunteers who have a knack for re- pairing broken household items such as jewelry, small home appliances and textiles. Café visitors are encour- aged to bring in their dam- aged items, such as busted zippers, faulty toaster ov- ens, broken vacuums or clocks that have stopped ticking. Many goods that appear broken beyond re- pair are simple to fix, with guidance and instruction from a skilled fixer volun-from a skilled fixer volun-f teer. Not only is the Repair Café a productive way to build a stronger and more resilient community, it's al- so a good strategy to reduce consumer waste and keep broken items from piling up in landfills. The "fix-it" culture is something com- munities should embrace, says Marcus Logan, man- ager of community devel- opment and engagement at Oakville Public Library (OPL). "North Americans con- tribute over 9.5 million tonnes of clothing to land- fills each year," says Logan.fills each year," says Logan.f "The hope is that these types of initiatives will in- spire people to think twice before throwing broken items directly in the trash, without trying to repair them." The best part is that the Repair Café is free. "When I tell people the event is free, they are hap- pily surprised," says Lo- gan. "Why buy a brand-new item to replace something broken, when you could learn how to repair it for no cost? It's a no-brainer." The Repair Café takes place at the Central Branch of the Oakville Public Li- brary on Sunday, May 5, 2019 from 1 to 4 p.m. Regis- tration is not required. For more information about OPL's events, services and programs, visit opl.ca. This biweekly column is provided by the Oakville Public Library. OPINION DON'T THROW IT AWAY, BRING IT TO THE REPAIR CAFÉ IT'S A SMART MOVE, WRITES THE OPL OAKVILLE PUBLIC LIBRARY Column SIGN UP FOR OUR WEEKLY NEWSLETTER AT INSIDEHALTON.COM