JANE N. SLATER

508-645-3378

(slaterjn@comcast.net)

Chilmark is celebrating spring with the usual rainy days and sunny interludes ... typical early spring in New England, and we are glad to see all the hearty blooming flowers showing their colors around town. We send our messages of comfort and concern to other parts of New England that suffered in the recent rains and resulting floods.

We send condolences to the friends and family of Geraldine Lee Glimcher of Westwood and Cove Road, Chilmark. She died at Fox Hill in Westwood on March 21. She had been a summer resident of Chilmark for many years and her friends here will miss her. Her three daughters, Susan, Laurie and Nancy and their families, survive her.

Wendy Weldon will display her recent paintings and James Langlois will show his drawings at the Chilmark Public Library meeting room from March 31 to April 29. The show is open to the public during the regular library hours. Wendy is a well-known Chilmark artist, and this will be James’ first exhibit on the Vineyard.

Sue Larsen has logged 455 miles so far in her effort to do at least 500 miles in training for her Avon Walk for Cancer in Boston on May 15 and 16. Last weekend she completed the Tea Lane-Tabor House loop in beautiful spring weather. The motto of this year’s Avon walk is, “We are in it to end it.” Susan will welcome your support as she walks to, among other things, raise our awareness of the need for a cure. Her Web site is Avonwalk.org/goto/susanlarsen.

Gwen Mayhew, daughter of Greg and Lois of Quitsa, is enjoying some leave after her duties in Haiti. She served as a Navy nurse aboard the U.S. hospital ship Hope. Friends and family are glad to have her at home for a visit.

We send condolences to the many friends and family of Tom Osmers, a fisherman, who died March 12. He was beloved by his many friends and respected for his interest and passion for fishing and for his generous life style. He will be long remembered and much missed.

There is currently a lot of interest in the Tea Lane Farm and its future. The farm sits in the center of the old Chilmark, where the church, town hall, post office and a grocery store once stood. The farmhouse was built in 1785 by the Hillmans, who were there for two generations, after that came a Look family and then a Norton family. Virginia Jones tells us that her grandparents, Joseph Howes and his wife, Bessie, bought the farm about 1915 and farmed until 192l, when the Silva family bought it. They ran a dairy there for a number of years.

Currently, the town owns the farm buildings and three acres and the Martha’s Vineyard Land Bank owns the surrounding acreage. The town is asking for suggestions from interested parties as to the future use of the farm. If you have any ideas to offer, please call town hall.

Please mark your calendars for April 22 when the League of Women Voters will host a candidates’ forum at the Community Center at 7 p.m. Come and hear from those up for election.

The annual town meeting will be on April 26 at 7:30 p.m. at the community center, and voting will be on April 28 at the community center. Save the dates and use your vote! The next selectmen’s meeting is April 6 at town hall at 7:30 p.m.

Good luck to Tim Broderick and Alec Gale, who are in the process of renovating their new fishing boat, Retriever. She will join the local fishing fleet. Let’s hope that this is another indication that commercial fishing is alive and well in Menemsha.

The Menemsha Café is now open weekdays from 11a.m. to 2 p.m. for lunch.