JOHN S. ALLEY
508-693-2950
The weekend weather was just delightful, despite the fierce rainstorm last Friday evening that netted us just over an inch of August rain. The beaches were pleasantly full and many cookouts were cooking. The school playing field was busy as a beehive on Sunday.
Shirley Mayhew, of Music street, reports that on Sunday her granddaughter Katie Mayhew will join David Crohan in a concert at 4:30 p.m. at the Whaling Church in Edgartown to benefit COMSOG. Katie opened the Possible Dreams Auction in Oak Bluffs Monday night by singing Over the Rainbow.
Bob and Diantha Eisendrath of Middle Road report that three generations of family members gathered last week at the Eisendrath barn. Relatives aged 5 to 81 came from Chicago, Ill., East Hartford, Conn., Matunuck, R.I., and Boston. Vicious croquet games, tasty lobster rolls and long afternoons at Long Point beach were enjoyed by all. Family stories were swapped until midnight each evening. A highlight for attendee Jane Rosenbluth Baldwin was a visit with her childhood friend, John Athearn. Late in the week, cousins Megan and Carey Baldwin joined the party, showing off and selling their innovative handmade bubble dresses.
The 148th Annual Agricultural Fair begins in just 12 days — Thursday, August 20 (through Sunday). This year’s theme is the year of the ox. The cover on the booklet is by artist Morgan Lucero, who works at the Vineyard Gazette. Fair books are available at the Agricultural Hall office on Panhandle Road, which has been open since Monday, when preparations for the fair began in earnest. The fair book gives a complete schedule of events, plus details on all the categories, should you be planning to enter an exhibit, and the necessary forms. Eleanor Neubert, fair manager, wants to remind each exhibitor that all entry forms must be turned in by Monday August 17, at 5 p.m. This policy has increased efficiency and eliminated the long lines of people waiting on Wednesday afternoon.
The Vineyard Transit Authority will be extending bus service to the fair. These days it may the most economical and efficient way for you to get there. A complete bus schedule will be posted on the front porch of the hall, or call the VTA at 508-693-9440.
Joann Frechett and her husband, Bob Nash, of Oak Lane and Wyckoff, N.J., have been here for the summer season. Their son Jeremy, of Brooklyn, N.Y., a former member of the Vineyard Sound vocal group, visited last weekend. Their recent guests were her mother in law Dorothy Nash and Fran Rizzolo, of New York city; they enjoyed the beach, cookouts and the good weather.
George Hartman, of Panhandle Road, proudly reports that last Wednesday he and his wife Andrea celebrated their 20th wedding anniversary on the shore of Ames Pond at Cedar Tree Neck, the spot where they were married. George returned home recently after attending an antique engine show in Eliot, Me. He traveled over to Friendship, Me., to visit Dan and Kyra West; although it rained most of the time, he managed to have a good time.
Michelle Berlyne her husband, Rick Chisolm, and their children, Timothy and Sarah, of Toronto, Canada, will be arriving on Tuesday to visit her mother, Shanti Blum, at her Music street home. The following week Leslie Hect and her children Sidne and Mason, of Mammoth, N.J., will be arriving for a summer visit.
Marian Irving, of Old County Road, reports that the Rev. Raphael Warnock, who serves as the senior pastor of the Ebenezer Baptist Church (Martin Luther King’s church) in Atlanta, Ga., will be the pulpit guest on Sunday, August 16 at the Congregational Church. Rev. Warnock, at age 40, is sought after as a preacher and scholar. A fellow Union Theological Seminary graduate, Rev. Warnock is a personal friend of our minister, Rev. Cathlin Baker, and is looking forward to a Vineyard vacation with friends. The service will begin at 10 a.m.
Toni Kurasch, down in New York city and a frequent visitor here, reports that you should keep your eye to the night sky all this month and follow the planet Mars, as Earth is catching up with her in an encounter that by the end of the month will culminate in the closest approach between the two planets in recorded history. The next time Mars may come this close is in 2287.
Marian Irving reports that there will be the final ice cream festival of the season on the church lawn tomorrow from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. All proceeds will benefit the scholarship fund.
The Rev. David and Carol Christensen, of Edgartown Road, recently returned home from their most recent three-week mission trip to Ghana, West Africa. They lead a team of teachers and worked in partnership with the Evangelical Presbyterian Church, Ghana, and the Roman Catholic Diocese of Ho, teaching in schools, being present at the leprosarium and regional hospital in Ho, the Volta regional capital, and leading worship. They also met with villages in conjunction with the Ho Rotary Club, attempting to partner it with Rotary clubs in the United States and to help develop ways of delivering safe water to their communities. This marked David’s tenth trip and Carol’s ninth and they are excited by the improvements. They will present an update of their work at the Federated Church in Edgartown on Thursday, August 20 at 6:30 p.m.
David Sample reports that the Purdom/Heirs/Sample family reunion on Cobb’s Hill was super. Everyone has gone back to their homes filled with memories. David and Nadine Sample are thrilled to have their friends Mike and Michelle Kurisky and Duane and Arlene Thorpe of Leesburg, Va., on Island for their first visit. Their children Sarah S. Hannah, Sarah T. Scott, Nate, Alex and Sean have been having a week of fun on the Tisbury Great Pond.
Lee Revere reports that the 52nd annual library book sale made a record amount, more than $21,000! She would like to thank all the book donors who gave them something to sell and to the incredible volunteers who sorted and displayed the books so well. On the Free Day, they had a good crowd who donated cash generously. Jane Newhall was a welcome sight at this year’s sale.
Rebecca Hodgson, of Music street, and her friend Lila Nadelmans, of New Brunswick, N.J., drove across country to see her sister Darcy recently. Becky is teaching yoga classes at the Vineyard Alternative Medicine center every Sunday at 9 a.m.
Colleen Garrett, reports that the annual all-you-can-eat Rotary Club Pancake Breakfast will be held from 7 a.m. to noon at the Anchors in Edgartown. For further details give her a call at 508-693-4408.
On July 24, 1929, nearly 2000 people gathered in the Woods Meadow for the first, and apparently the last, home grown circus event ever held in town. Prancing horses, a gymkhana, tumbling clowns, a ringmaster and hundreds of cars parked in neat rows around a big cleared circle in the center while their occupants occupied ringside seats on the grass. The hospital benefited from this event. The show was held only a few rods from the old race track just up the road. Johnson Whiting was the ringmaster and he presided in the ring with skill while his wife, Emma, in an old-time costume, added the appropriate atmosphere; she is credited with organizing the entire event. One of the clowns, in a ballet gown of blue chiffon, was their son Everett; a harlequin who displayed amazing tricks on his broad backed steed was a well known athlete and Yale student, their older son John. One of the young “summer girls” in town, Miss Barbara Foote, rode very professionally in several events. Miss Virginia Woods bareback riding was the best feat of horsemanship that afternoon. The riding demonstration put on by the Woods boys, Fred and Bob, was nothing short of spectacular. The beautiful horses owned by Mrs. F. N. Woods were a joy to behold.
Happy birthday to: Warren Morse, Martha Moore, Danguole Gabis and Alice Hopkins today; Debbie Brew, Keston Smith, Tom Hodgson and Helen Brown tomorrow; Claire Gray, Kim O’Connor, and Robyn Hanover on Sunday; Jim Pritchard, Erik Lowe, and Matthew Bradley on Monday; Rosemary Bechtold, Linda Carroll, Diana Waring and J.C. Murphy on Tuesday; Susan Fieldsmith, Joe Schroeder and Sam Stevenson on Wednesday; Peter Rodegast, Mariah Peebles, Leslie Sterns and Pricilla Fischer on Thursday. Belated birthday greetings to Goodie Stiller. Wedding anniversary wishes to Rosemary and Nick Van Nes on Monday, and Jon and Genevieve Randall celebrate their 21st tomorrow.
Well, that is all of the news for this week’s column. If you have any news please call or e-mail me. Have a good week.
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