Chilmark is turning a deaf ear to my plea to slow things down a bit. June is already almost gone and I am not ready to move on yet. So many things undone, unreported, un-enjoyed . . . is that a word? Anyway, we are moving into summer at a rapid pace. It seems that the long, cold spring has moved on. The rain on the weekend was ill-timed but I could hear the ground sighing with relief. All the gardens were grateful and now look lush and healthy.

The portable sidewalks are almost in place at the Menemsha beach parking lot. The beach is a busy place both days and evenings now so safety is important and we hope the folks use the walkways to and from the beach where they will be safer than on the roadway.

Chilmark Community Church said goodbye last weekend to Seongmoon Ahn and his family, who were at the Chilmark Church parsonage for the past two and a half years while Seongmoon served as pastor to the church. He has been transferred to East Bridgewater. In the short time he was in Chilmark he reached many people and ministered to the community at large. We wish him and his family the best of luck in their new adventure.

The Reverend Kathleen Dorr will serve the Chilmark Community Church next week. She is an Episcopal priest most recently of the Diocese of Connecticut. All are welcome and the service begins at 9 a.m.

The Chilmark Flea Market begins on Wednesday this week and will continue on Wednesdays and Saturdays through July and August at the Jenkinson field on North Road. Admission is free and there is parking in the field. The flea market is a fundraiser for the Chilmark Community Church. They are also selling the popular lobster rolls at the church hall on Tuesday nights for the rest of the summer. The lobster rolls are sold to go and include extras . . . all for the benefit of the church.

There will be a reception at the Chilmark library on June 27 to open the display of photography by Gabriela Herman for the Beetlebung Farm Cookbook. The reception will be from 3 to 5 p.m.

The Chilmark library Wednesday program on July 1 will feature a book talk with author Chris Fischer about the Beetlebung Farm Cookbook. The program begins at 5 p.m. at the library and Gabriela Herman’s photographs that illustrate the cookbook will surround him. Chris will serve freshly-baked bread with crostini toppings from his book. All are welcome at no charge. The Friends of the Library sponsor the programs.

Chris Fischer will also be at Bunch of Grapes in Vineyard Haven for a cooking demo and book signing at 4 p.m. on June 28. He will be making Mermaid Farm granite with strawberries. Congratulations to Chris on the success of his cookbook , which is drawing much attention, and all of it good, from around the food world!

Bill and Zee Gamson are back at their State Road home after three intense days celebrating two very important things at their alma mater, Antioch College in Yellow Springs, Ohio. The college reopened when the alumni bought it from those who closed it, and just graduated its first class since reopening. Clarence Jones, who is 85 years old, was the commencement speaker and he commemorated the 50th anniversary of Martin Luther King’s speech at Antioch College. He spoke about the need to organize mass protests around the country in the wake of the tragic shooting at Emanuel AME Church in Charleston.

Caulder Martin and Caitlin Cook and their daughter, Maeve Cook Martin, enjoyed a brief visit from Seattle this week past with Caulder’s parents, George and Beverly Martin, on South Road.

Donald and Susan Luce are at the Luce cottage on Chowder Kettle Lane for some time in June, coming from Downingtown, Pa. for their annual spring visit. They are back from a memorable visit to Tahiti and are planning more travels soon.

Jack and Nina Huberman traveled through Nova Scotia last week and found it to a friendly place with spectacular views. They are now at their Menemsha home for two weeks before returning to Santa Fe.

Phoebe Mae Esposito, who was born in Providence on May 6, will make her first Vineyard visit this week when she arrives for a three-week visit with her great-grandparents, Kim and Bobbie Kimber of Abel’s Hill. Kim and Sarah Kimber, her grandparents, are also eager to entertain their first grandchild. Nic and Casey Esposito will accompany Phoebe for the Chilmark reunion.

It might help to make note of the only talk David McCullough will make on the Island this summer about his well-reviewed new biography, The Wright Brothers. He will speak at the Grange Hall to benefit the West Tisbury Library Foundation. There is more information at wtlibraryfoundation.org.

Simona Neumann arrived this week to spend the summer with her grandparents, Conrad and Jane Neumann, and to return to her duties at The Galley.

David and Jill Johnstone of Ashland have been at their cottage on Larsen Lane for a week and look forward to returning in September for another week.

Arne and Helen deKeijzer of Weston, Conn., are at their Larsen Lane home for a short visit this week.

Please call or email me with your news as it is hard to keep track of you all as we move into warp speed.

Send Chilmark news to slaterjn@comcast.net.