JANE N. SLATER

508-645-3378

(slaterjn@comcast.net)

Chilmark’s quiet time is about to become its dark time . . . the clocks get changed in a couple of weeks and life goes on. One wonders what it would be like if allowed to be just what it is. I suppose getting to school and work is what makes the difference. Anyway, fair warning — enjoy the light!

We send congratulations to Paul and Beth Mayhew of Menemsha Crossroad who are celebrating their 50th wedding anniversary this week. We hear a trip to Nantucket is included in the planned festivities. Cheers from us all!

Bill and Zee Gamson are back from a family reunion in San Diego where they saw their granddaughters Reba and Maddy serve as flower girls at their aunt’s wedding at Point Loma. Bill and Zee enjoyed the sunshine and some pool-side time before returning east to go to New Hampshire where they campaigned for President Obama. We send condolences to the family and friends of Ollie Edwards who died at her Essex home on Oct. 7. She had been a seasonal resident of Chilmark for more than 50 years. Ollie and Garth recently celebrated their 73rd wedding anniversary at a joyful family reunion at their Abel’s Hill home. The family plans a memorial service to be held in the summer of 2013. Her many friends and extended family will miss her cheerful spirit.

Word has come to us from Panama that longtime Chilmark summer resident Bill Kirkland, has undergone successful emergency surgery. We send best wishes for a speedy recovery and hope to see Bill and Rainy at their summer home on D.H.’s Hill next summer.

We send condolences to the friends and family of Charles (Chuck) Phillips who died last week at his Lexington, Va. home. More details will be in a later edition of this paper. Chuck and Marjorie have been summer residents of Larsen Lane for many years and have many friends and family members on Martha’s Vineyard. We will all miss him.

This is the time every year that I break with tradition and send birthday wishes to a couple of Chilmark notables who are celebrating this week. I shared some of their Menemsha school days so I must be sharing in their numbers! Birthday cheers to Elmore Mayhew and Everett Poole. The West Tisbury library is now moved to North Tisbury and continues to host Monday night movies at the Chilmark library meeting room at 7 p.m. This Monday movie will be Paper Moon. The Friends of the Chilmark library are hosting the knitters group every Thursday at 7 p.m. They welcome knitters of any level of expertise.

The Chilmark commercial scallop season begins on Oct. 29 in Nashaquitsa Pond only, and then on Nov. 19 Menemsha Pond will open. Family scalloping has been going on all month with the family limit one half a bushel a week. Commercial limits are two heaping bushels a day. Watch your local fish markets for the tasty treats of winter.

The annual fall scarecrow festival is in full swing. Chilmark has two scarecrows this season so far. The Meegan family has created The Reader, who is sitting with his books on the Larsens’ lawn at Beetlebung corner. The Martha’s Vineyard Savings Bank has Simon Legree, created by Calder Martin. The scarecrows are by way of donating to the Martha’s Vineyard Public Charter School and are a popular fundraiser and Island amusement every October.

Not much news this week but remember that in the next few weeks we have coming, along with the commercial scalloping season, Halloween and national elections . . . trick or treat? The Chilmark firefighters will host the pre-trick or treat evening at the Community Center on Oct. 31 with costume judging, refreshments and general mood-setting for the exciting evening in the lives of Chilmark’s young and young at heart.