The weather has continued in the 60s during the day throughout the week. The foliage changes with each passing day and the pumpkin moon has been big, beautiful and bright. The Aquinnah Police Department has the new cruiser on the road, a new Ford. The old Dodge charger will be retired and now used for use by all departments. Overhanging trees have been trimmed along State Road and Lighthouse Road — a sure sign of impending heavy snow to laden the boughs. The old log cabin next door met its demise this week with the Deca wrecking ball. The cabin was part of Camp Aquinnah run by Dr. James Hubert Sr. a century ago. It sat by the wayside of the ancient way between State Road and Lighthouse Road. A very large portion of one of the cliffs fell to the beach this past week, surely washed out to sea already.

Halloween will be the theme at the Aquinnah Public Library for this coming week. Saturday coffee and tea will be served as well as pumpkin flavored treats. The craft for the day will be spooky pumpkins from noon to 3 p.m. On Tuesday afternoon, the tribal after school program will read scary books together. On Thursday afternoon, Halloween treats will be available during story hour.

The Aquinnah Halloween party for all the ghosts and goblins will be on Thursday, Oct. 31 from 4 to 6 at the town hall. Please bring a snack to share, wear your best costume and have a wonderful time. If you would like to be on the list for trick and treaters please email Alexandra Taylor dogfishbar@gmail.com. Martha’s Vineyard Community Services will sponsor the 6th annual Domestic Violence Awareness Walk on Saturday, Oct. 26. It’s a two-mile walk through historic Edgartown. The rain date is Sunday. Registration is $5 in advance or $10 the day of the walk with registration at the Park & Ride lot at the Triangle.

On Wednesday, Oct. 30 at 7:30 p.m. This is Our Island, which was produced by Katherine Cornell and Nancy Hamilton, will be shown at the Martha’s Vineyard Film Center. The doors open at 7 p.m. Tickets are $15 at the door. Martha’s Vineyard Museum and Martha’s Vineyard Film Society members pay $12.

It was nice to see Kevin Devine who drove up from Fort Benning in Columbus, Ga., to attend services for Ricky Vanderhoop. While here, he surprised is mother Wendy King with a new vehicle as he and his family upgraded for their move to Alaska. Upon his return to Georgia, Kevin and his family will head to the northwest where he will continue his 20-year career in the U.S. Army.

Condolences to the family and friends of Charles “Butch” Downs who passed away at Martha’s Vineyard Hospital. Butch was one of the original swordfish spotters who made the chase that much easier in the 1960s and 70s. Services were held for him on Wednesday.

Get well wishes to fellow Vineyard Gazette columnist Nancy Gardella who underwent surgery at Massachusetts General Hospital on Friday. She anticipates arriving home over the next few days.

Condolences to the family and friends of Manuel Lima who passed away on Thursday at Martha’s Vineyard Hospital. He enjoyed his daily rides to Aquinnah over the years, enjoying the views and the landscaping along the way. He is survived by his children Michael, Sylvia and Lisa, as well as his grandchildren and his nieces and nephews.

It was so good to see Donna Nagle here over the weekend. She is now residing in Santa Barbara, Calif., and will spend two weeks on the Vineyard.

Congratulations to Aquinnah Tribal Elder John “Randy” Randolph III who was recently honored by the town of Oak Bluffs and the Oak Bluffs water commissioners as they dedicated the new John Randolph III booster pumping station, named in his honor. John has been with the Oak Bluffs water department since he started in March of 1973. His father, John H. Randolph Jr., worked at the OB Water Company for many years as well. His aunt Charity Randolph was very proud to attend, as were his sisters Rebecca Allen, Mia Rebello and Kim Araujo.

Charity Randolph and her sister Arenda (Bunny) Randolph Maxwell recently enjoyed a visit from Eleanor Hebert and yours truly. It was our annual autumn outing to Farm Neck for brunch and catching up with news of our families. One of the highlights was to enjoy the photographs of their aunt Hazel Randolph Haskins, the eldest Aquinnah tribal member at 101 years young. We also enjoyed photographs of Arenda and her husband Roger Maxwell during their visit to the White House with President Obama and the First Lady.

The funeral service for Ricky Vanderhoop was a strong show of support for his family. Hundreds of people from across the Vineyard and across the country attended his wake at the Aquinnah town hall on Thursday afternoon and evening. The first hundred people were able to sit in Community Baptist Church to hear the words of Rev. Roger H. Spinney. The remainder stood in the churchyard, in the roadway and across the street. His fellow hot rod enthusiasts rode from the church, past his childhood home, around Aquinnah Circle and to the graveside. A potluck gathering of several hundred people crowded into their family restaurant the Aquinnah Shop. Ricky, we will all miss you but your memories will rest with us for a long time, as will the skid marks in your memory.

Happy 41st anniversary wishes to Paul and Beth Mayhew as they celebrate on Oct. 27.

Happy 1st birthday wishes to Tillie Arrow Taylor who celebrated her special day on Oct. 17.

Paul Henry Mayhew, Katy Carroll, Patty Rossi and Amy Rogers all celebrate the day on Oct. 27. Waylon Sauer will be seven years old on Monday after already celebrating with a fishing party on the Menemsha jetty. Captain William (Buddy) Vanderhoop will party on Oct. 29 and shares the day with Kathy Newman. Arlen Roth will celebrate on Oct. 30. Halloween is shared by Carla Cuch and Cooper Davis.