JANE N. SLATER

508-645-3378

(slaterjn@comcast.net)

Chilmark had a sleepy week last week while everyone was off enjoying the school vacation. It is still quiet, even with most families back and settling into their routines. However, there is a lot of action in Menemsha. A new septic system is being installed on Basin Road. The rebuilding of the dock continues and there are other work sites that require cranes and trucks so there is much to watch these days! The Café will be open next Monday from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. on weekdays with dinners on Fridays from 5 to 8 p.m.

Tomorrow morning, March 12, at 11 a.m. there will be a program of song and story for all ages at the Chilmark Community Center. David Bates and Roger Tincknell will perform in a work called Under One Sky, a multicultural celebration. The event is presented by the Martha’s Vineyard Library Association with the support of the Massachusetts Cultural Council.

Word has reached us of the death on Feb. 16 of Frank Cyganowski of Fairhaven. Frank was well known to many during the swordfishing days in Menemsha. He was the captain of the Seer, a yacht owned by Harry Bellas Hess of Oyster Bay. The boat joined the swordfishing fleet for a number of summers. Frank went on to a successful career as a captain in the tuna fishing industry and retired in Fairhaven. We send condolences to his wife, Ruby, family, and his many friends here and elsewhere.

We thank David Seward for posting the above information on Facebook.

The Martha’s Vineyard Center for Living will sponsor the third cultural luncheon of the winter on March 12 at The Grill on Main in Edgartown from noon to 2 p.m. Kerry Alley will be the keynote speaker and will discuss the influence and contributions of the Portuguese community on Martha’s Vineyard.

BZ Riger will continue her series of lessons called Getting Connected on the Internet, of course! The class on March 16 will be about digital photos. She will tell us how to store, sort and share our pictures.

Lillian Kellman sends word that she and Ray are very much enjoying the sights and weather of La Jolla, Calif. where they are wintering. They are already looking forward to returning to their Chilmark home.

The Menemsha Fisheries Development Fund is sponsoring a program at the Chilmark Library on March 17 at 5 p.m. Dr. Elizabeth A. Fairchild of the University of New Hampshire will report on the Martha’s Vineyard winter flounder enhancement project. Winter flounder populations have been declining for the past 20 years and studies are being made to reverse this trend. All are welcome to come and hear this interesting material at no charge.

John and Barbara Armstrong are back at their Menemsha home after an enjoyable winter vacation. They traveled to Savannah where they visited John’s sister Kathy, her husband, Bruce, and their daughter, Molly. John and Barbara continued on to make stops at St. Augustine and Jekyll Island.

The free Friday night movie at the Chilmark Library will be on March 18 at 7 p.m. and the movie will be North by Northwest, an Alfred Hitchcock mystery staring Cary Grant. Popcorn and drinks are offered free. All are welcome.

I am always impressed at how far families go and how much they take in during one school vacation. Two of our Chilmark families, Jim and Diane Morgan with Lily and Alistair, and Matt and Patty Poole with Natalie and Ben, traveled together to Uruguay. They were the guests of Estavan and Carol Aranzabe and they stayed in the coastal town of LaPedrera. Their sightseeing included beautiful beaches and sand dunes of the Atlantic coast and much else of interest to all. Estavan’s son, Martin, is coming to the Vineyard to spend a year at the Martha’s Vineyard Regional High School and learn what living here is like.

On the other hand, how about Cathy Thompson’s 48-hour jaunt to the Windy City where she caught up on her Chicago friends and was back at the Aquinnah Library on schedule?!

Don’t forget to change the clocks on Saturday night. They get moved ahead at this time of year.