Meet Susan Hanifin, devoted community member and a staple at the Tool Library’s Dare to Repair Cafes. Susan stumbled upon the Tool Library while constructing a Little Free Library for her neighborhood. This auspicious encounter has greatly benefited the Dare to Repair attendees who value Susan’s textile repair skills.
- How did you discover the Tool Library?
I became a member of the Tool Library because I have one of those Little Free Libraries in front of my house. I love to be able to share books with my community, which is actually the neighborhood I grew up in. It’s an amazing little neighborhood with lots of families and there wasn’t a little library in it, so I decided to build one. I was doing a lot of research for it, and I started getting information about tool libraries from around the country. I became a member at our local Tool Library shortly thereafter!
- How has the Tool Library benefited you?
I am a DIY’er and needed to renovate my home, so I found the Tool Library and joined. My experience has been wonderful. I have met terrific folks who commit their time and talents to a worthy venture that benefits our community and the environment. As a member, I love to show people my Tool Library card because a lot of people are still learning about the organization and its impact on our Western New York community.
- You also participate in the Tool Library’s Dare to Repair events. What is the experience like?
At the Dare to Repair events, I am a fixer and mender of textiles. I really enjoy going to different libraries, parks and schools around the area and seeing the building we are housed in for the next three hours to work together and repair whatever tangible item is brought in. I have fixed and mended backpacks, winter coats, winter boots, shirts, stuffed animals, pants, pillows and even a jersey for a Philadelphia Flyers fan! We talked about hockey for a long time and joked about the Sabres rivalry. I really appreciated the stories he shared with me.
- What do you find rewarding about being a fixer at Dare to Repair?
Being with different people from all over and helping them learn about my skill is the best part of the Dare to Repair Cafes. We often have many return visitors who need other things mended and we sit together and have lovely little talks. The true joy for me is sharing our words and learning about the folks around here. The success in repairing their item is second for me. When they leave, people are just so grateful for our time, our skill and the fact it is all done for free. Where, in actuality the underlying mission is to help our environment. Data is collected from each item brought in and repaired: cost, weight, etc. that allows the Tool Library to write grants, obtain sponsors, and report back to the Board. It’s an incredibly interesting process.
- How else do you share your passion for environmentalism?
I have always been a ‘domestic artist’, a crafter and creator. Over the past few years I’ve started creating pieces that are made from fibers that are environmentally conscious. I make paper out of scraps from school or tissue that is put in packages. I sew different kinds of paper to incorporate it into an art piece. I may include a piece of found nature: a twig, a pinecone, dried flower petals or leaves. Last year I had several of my art pieces show at The Comma Gallery in East Aurora. It was a huge highlight in my year. I am also working on upcycling clothing that adds more purposeful features, like added pockets.
- What do you do outside of the Tool Library?
I’ve been teaching for about thirty years and have been teaching first-graders for the last fifteen. It’s a calling and one of my true life passions. Teaching “the littles” how to move forward in becoming kind humans, while taking on words they read and write and loving it all along the way. Just the writing they are capable of is incredible. Their teeth are always falling out and we go through many boxes of tissues and there is always newness for us each day!
- What is your favorite tool you’ve rented from the Tool Library?
I have borrowed about 15 different tools from the Tool Library. My two favorites so far are the miter saw, to cut small disks of a birch plant and the small jack hammer which I used last year when I renovated my two bathrooms. I used the small jack hammer and crowbar to remove the tile floors and then several laminate floors underneath.