Mary Oliver
The wind wags its many tails. And in the evening the piled firewood shifts a little, longing to be on its way. —Mary Oliver
September 26, 2025
Please Adopt Us: Week Ending Sept. 26
We’re very happy to report that Turnip’s return to the shelter did not last long; she was scooped up by a family that just adores her. Congratulations Turnip!
Land Bank Revenues as of Sept. 19
The Martha’s Vineyard Land Bank reported revenues of $493,510.87 for the business week ending on Friday, Sept. 19, 2025.
Recent Real Estate Transactions for Week Ending Sept. 21
David Stephens and Rachel Stephens purchased 6 Gerts Way in Edgartown from Marsha Amstel and Morton Amstel for $1,450,000 on Sept. 16.
Island to Lose Help of Key Epidemiologist
Lea Hamner, a Chilmark-based epidemiologist who joined the Island’s tick prevention program in 2023, will soon be stopping her work because the grant she was paid through has been almost completely expended.
Revamping
Monday’s Equinox began my favorite of the seasons. The nights are perfect for sleeping with the addition of a blanket.
Lingering
Birds that do not stay through the winter sometimes linger longer into the fall. Why not? We are in the midst of a nice and generally warm September.
Chappy Town Columns: Week Ending Sept. 26
Keep an eye on those two potential hurricanes just off of the doorstep of Cape Hatteras.
Edgartown Town Column: Week Ending Sept. 26
The challenge is on. It has gotten much cooler at night, and when you get up in the morning the house is cool or sometimes cold.
Chilmark Town Column: Week Ending Sept. 26
A brilliant writer, E.B. White once wrote, “The sea became my unspoken challenge: the wind, the tide, the fog, the ledge, the bell, the gull that cried help, the never-ending threat and bluff of weather. Once having permitted the wind to enter the belly of my sail, I was not able to quit the helm;…
West Tisbury Town Column: Week Ending Sept. 26
Yom Kippur begins Wednesday, Oct. 1, and that observance reminds me of a time long ago.
Vineyard Haven Town Column: Week Ending Sept. 26
Heartbreaking newsletter! Because of cuts to the arts our Yard in Chilmark must close for this next year. Joan Walsh has a fantastic painting she did of our Island kids being taught to dance by professionals from New York several years ago. I spent many years going to performances at the Yard. The Tibetan monks…
Oak Bluffs Town Column: Week Ending Sept. 26
Listen to John Updike describe September: ”The breezes taste of apple peel. The air is full of smells to feel — ripe fruit, old footballs, drying grass, new books and blackboards chalk in class. The bee, his hive, well, honey hums while Mother cuts Chrysanthemums. Like plates washed clean with suds, the days are polished…
Concord Grapes
He sowed others reaped.” This epitaph can be found on Ephraim Wales Bull’s gravestone at Sleepy Hollow Cemetery in Concord.
On the Table
From the September 28, 1962 edition of the Vineyard Gazette by Joseph Chase Allen:
The one thing that every generation shares with the one preceding it, is the memory of that “grand, old-fashioned cookery.”
A Love of the Game Fuels New Soccer Coach
On a recent afternoon before the start of practice, head coach of the boys soccer team Rodrigo Honorato didn’t hesitate when asked what the game means to him.
Deer Hunting Season Extended In Effort to Combat Lyme Spread
Deer hunting season on Martha’s Vineyard will be extended an extra month this year as state officials hope to cull the expanding deer herd that is fueling the rise of tick-borne illnesses on the Island.
A Life Saved
I recently suffered a major cardiac event, referred to as a “widow maker” and was very fortunate to survive the event. According to the American Heart Association, severe blockages of the left anterior descending (LAD) artery have a 12 per cent survival rate when they occur outside of an advanced medical facility. The secret to…
A Doctor Who Led With His Heart
I can’t say that I knew Dr. Michael Jacobs, who died at the tail end of this summer, well at all.
Hunting Season Brings an Opportunity
The Massachusetts Division of Fisheries & Wildlife (DFW) relies on hunters to reduce the growing Martha’s Vineyard deer herd. Islanders broadly have a stake in the hunters’ success.
Way to Go Buster
On Friday, Sept. 12, there was a free luncheon put on by Buster Giordano and his hard-working family at Giordano’s Restaurant for all Island military veterans and their spouses.
Preserve the Island’s Character
After seeing an article about a proposed development on the Vineyard, I felt inspired to comment from the perspective of someone who has come to the Island as a mostly summer visitor beginning in the mid 1960s.
Camaraderie and Casting; Female Anglers Stand Out
Sport fishing has long been a male-dominated activity, but on the Vineyard the participation of skilled female anglers has continued to grow and form tight bonds over the decades.
Road Love
udos to the state’s highway department for making our roads look so beautiful this summer. Your hard work is very much appreciated.
Thanks Capt
For your sleek schooners / the sweep of your sweet beach / the slant of your dock house / the gambrel of your restaurant / where all the mates / would come to gab / and mug up by that / big wide hearth.
Soccer Teams to Host Cancer Benefit Games
The Martha’s Vineyard Regional High School boys and girls varsity soccer teams will be raising awareness and funds to fight cancer during their home games this upcoming weekend.
Court Report: Week Ending Sept. 26
Cesar D. Silva, 23, of Vineyard Haven, was arraigned on Sept. 2 charges in Oak Bluffs of assault and battery and disorderly conduct.
Walk to Support Palestinian Families
There will be a Walk for Children fundraiser for Palestinian families in Gaza held on Saturday, Sept. 27, beginning at 2 p.m.
Bass in the Grass Showcases Fish Art
Over 20 artists participated in the Bass in the Grass this year, each one putting their particular creative spin on a wood block shaped like a fish.
Creative Living Award Event
Martha’s Vineyard Community Foundation invites all community members to celebrate Rev. Cathlin Baker and Bill Eville at its 42nd annual Creative Living Award celebration.
Pat West Gaff Rig Race Sees Rosa Parks Out in Front
On Saturday, Sept. 13, a day of light and variable winds, the 18-foot Marshall catboat Rosa Parks, driven by Jeffrey Craig, won the gaff class at the 37th Pat West Gaff Rig & Schooner Race in Vineyard Haven.
Finding Beauty in the Smallest of Petals
Libby Ellis knows how flowers think. The Vineyard artist’s new exhibit, Minificence, features miniature portraits of Island flora photographed digitally in black and white.
East Chop House Plans Draw Support, Concerns
A New Jersey couple’s proposal to partially demolish, relocate and expand their vintage East Chop house has drawn warm, but not universal support from nearby Oak Bluffs residents as the Martha’s Vineyard Commission begins its review of the project.
Oak Bluffs Ready to Roll on New Parking Lot Plans
A new paid town parking lot is one step closer to coming to Oak Bluffs. The town’s select board voted Tuesday to move forward with the permitting process to turn the empty lot at 0 Uncas avenue into a parking lot, though the mechanism by which patrons will pay for parking is still up in…
Tribal Leader Highlights Tick-Borne Illnesses During Kennedy Visit
Aquinnah tribal council chairwoman Cheryl Andrews-Maltais said that Robert F. Kennedy Jr. listened to concerns on tick-borne illnesses, avian flu and tularemia.
Saturn Is Close
The ringed planet Saturn is now poised for our viewing in the nights ahead.
Ocean View Neighbors Unite Against Hotel Plan
Plans for a three-story, 26-room hotel on the old Ocean View restaurant site in Oak Bluffs have spurred a unified resistance campaign among East Chop residents.
Man Arrested for Allegedly Setting Up Fake Bomb in Menemsha
Bruce Gray, 47, pleaded not guilty in Edgartown District Court Wednesday to possession of a hoax incendiary device and trespassing.
RFK Jr.’s Visit Met With Protests
Protestors gathered at Martha’s Vineyard Airport and in Aquinnah as health secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. visited the Island Tuesday for a meeting with a federal tribal advisory committee.
Still Sailing With Captain Bob
If you had been sitting on the beach in Menemsha preparing to watch the sunset this past Saturday you witnessed a rare thing.
Aimee Cotton Indicted on Manslaughter Charge
A Dukes County grand jury returned indictments for Aimee Cotton, 40, on charges of manslaughter and reckless endangerment of a child in connection with the death of Frank Rodenbaugh, a two-year-old who Ms. Cotton was babysitting.
Coast Guard Issues New Buoy Proposal
The Coast Guard is looking to remove 162 buoys in the northeast, and potentially combine several others.
Lyme Immunity Shot Prepares for Next Stage of Trials
A team of researchers at the University of Massachusetts Chan Medical School announced last week that they have teamed up with a pharmaceutical company to shepherd a Lyme antibody to phase two and three trials, the next step before getting approval with the federal government.
Island Towns Ponder Vineyard Wind Agreement
Several Island towns have begun discussing the potential to create an agreement that would demand better communication and planning from Vineyard Wind.
RFK Jr. to Visit Vineyard Tuesday
Robert F. Kennedy Jr., the nation’s health secretary, will be visiting the Island Tuesday to meet with a federal tribal advisory committee.
Way to Go Buster
On Friday, Sept. 12, there was a free luncheon put on by Buster Giordano and his hard-working family at Giordano’s Restaurant for all Island military veterans and their spouses.
Revolution Wind Can Restart Construction, Judge Rules
Construction on the 65-turbine Revolution Wind project off the coast of Aquinnah can resume after a federal district court judge granted the developers reprieve from a stop work order issued by the Trump administration.
Saying Goodbye as the Captain Steers a New Course
At 12:37 a.m. on Wednesday, April 23 of this year, Martha’s Vineyard lost an irreplaceable elder and we gather here today to grieve this loss together.
Kids Derby Hooks the Next Generation of Island Anglers
The Kids Derby on Sunday provided a once-a-year chance to fish from the Oak Bluffs Steamship wharf. The annual event is a family ritual held dear by Island families.
Two Edgartown Housing Developments Head to Regional Review
The Edgartown planning board unanimously voted to send the latest iteration of Katama Meadows, a subdivision plan off Meeting House Way, and a 15-unit project near Dairy Queen on Upper Main street to the Martha’s Vineyard Commission for review.
Tisbury Clears the Way for New Affordable Housing Project
The Tisbury board voted unanimously in favor of the Cat Hollow 40B development, which, proposed by the nonprofit Island Housing Trust, will add six home ownership apartments within three duplexes off Causeway Road.
Football Wins Big in Home Opener
The Martha’s Vineyard Regional High School football team cruised to a 38-12 win in their home opener against Sharon Saturday afternoon.
Islanders Walk to Raise Awareness for Suicide Prevention
Now in its eighth year, the From Darkness into Vineyard Light suicide prevention walk continues to raise awareness and give hope to people who have lost their loved ones.
Vineyard Community Gathers to Remember Robert Douglas
Hundreds of people gathered Friday evening at the Black Dog Wharf to celebrate the life and memory of Robert Douglas, the Vineyard schooner captain and founder of the Black Dog who died in April at 93.
Eye-Catching Wall in Oak Bluffs Draws on Island History
Passersby at the intersection of County Road and Edgartown-Vineyard Haven Road in Oak Bluffs have been noticing a new addition to the landscape: a 113-foot-long, fourt-foot-tall stone wall emblazoned with the word “Ogkeshkuppe.”
Chilmark Raises Inspection Fees
The Chilmark select board earlier this month voted to raise its inspection fees by $25.
