John Baines tells a story that symbolizes Repair Cafe and its unique mission.
At a recent Repair Cafe event at the Warford Activity Center (WAC), two small girls brought in their bicycles with flat tires.
“They pushed their bikes to Warford,” said Baines, 77, a U.S. Army veteran and retired registered nurse for more than 40 years, including at Northwest Texas Healthcare System. “No one knew how or was willing to fix them for them.”
A Repair Cafe volunteer stepped up and patched the tires and repaired the bike chains. And the girls were on their way.
“The girls were so excited when they got to ride their bikes home,” Baines said. “They were tickled to death. They had not been able to ride their bikes for months.”
This is what makes Repair Cafe special for the Amarillo community.
Baines is one of more than 20 volunteers for Repair Cafe, a free semiannual event by the City of Amarillo (COA) Parks and Recreation Department (PARD) where volunteers help residents repair/fix broken items such as lamps, bicycles, clothing, etc. Repair Cafe returns Saturday at the WAC from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Many of the volunteers are active in the 50 and Better programs provided by the WAC.
Myrl Betts is another volunteer and most likely one of the first faces you see when you enter the WAC for Repair Cafe. She is more or less the official greeter for Repair Cafe.
“People come in for repairs that they probably would not have been able to pay someone to do,” said Betts, who is 84 years young with two grown sons, five grandchildren and five great-granchildren. “Just seeing the joy on their faces when they leave with their items repaired is really special.”
Betts, who retired from Pantex three times (they kept asking her to come back, Betts said with a laugh) and IBM once, serves the community in several ways, including the Red Cross, Ronald McDonald House and at area blood banks.
So Betts knows a little about volunteering and its benefits not only for those needing a little help, but also for the volunteers.
“If you know how to do something and have a talent, Repair Cafe is looking for you,” Betts said. “If you are a seamstress, you can help repair someone’s jeans that may be ripped. There are opportunities to help with tools, how to use computers, all kinds of things.”
For Baines, who turns 78 in October and offers his expertise at sharpening ítems such as kitchen knives, Repair Cafe serves multiple needs in the community. Those who bring in items for repair can also learn from volunteers how to repair/fix their ítems.
“This is kind of the whole philosophy behind this – keeping what we have and not wasting our resources,” said Baines, who has two grown children, 19 grandchildren and 16 great-grandchildren. “If you have a talent and a desire to fix something, someone likely has a need for it and it does not have to end up at a landfill.”
Saturday’s event will be the fifth Repair Cafe for PARD. The Repair Cafe concept originated in the Netherlands almost 20 years ago and has since gone international.
“We could not do Repair Cafe without our volunteers and their expertise,” said PARD Senior Services Coordinator Kari Bachman. “We greatly appreciate their commitment and dedication to the Amarillo community. They truly make it a success.”
For more information on Repair Cafe, please see the recent COA news release at: www.amarillo.gov/news/2026/09/14/fix-it-dont-toss-it-repair-cafe-set-for-september-19/
Also for more information contact City of Amarillo Media Relations Manager Dave Henry at 806-378-5219 or by email at david.henry@amarillo.gov.