Chilmark has been shivering this week with temperatures more normal for February than March but it is already back to the 40s as I write midweek. The spring flowers seem to take the sudden freeze in stride and are still colorful.

Life is back to normal early spring as the students are back in school and parents are back to work, some sporting nice tans.

Marshall and Katie Carroll and their son, Brooks, are back from a family vacation to the Florida Keys with Marshall’s parents, Emmett and Kathie Carroll. They enjoyed boating and exploring and are home in time to enjoy the view of the ice on the jetty!

Scott McDowell and Annette Cingle and her daughter, Annalee Hoy, travelled to Hawaii to attend the wedding of Scott’s daughter, Lauren, to Mitchell Shepard. Their wedding was on one of the beautiful beaches of Oahu where the couple make their home. Lauren’s entire Martha’s Vineyard family was in attendance. Scott, Annette and Annalee traveled to the island of Maui for the rest of their vacation, where they fished, camped and visited with Annette’s family who live on that island. Scott and Lauren made an unexpected trip to San Diego to visit Scott’s son, Ross, who required emergency surgery last week. He is at his home now and recuperating and we send him good wishes for a speedy recovery.

Chilmark Community Church will switch from soup suppers to pizza nights on March 14, Tuesday. They will offer pizza at 6 p.m. to all at no charge.

The Martha’s Vineyard Hospital will host the 22nd annual health fair on April 8. It is an all-day free event that features many activities and giveaways.

Approximately 100 good friends and family members gathered at the Chilmark Community Center on Sunday afternoon to celebrate the 70th birthdays of the Seward twins, David and Douglas. They are popular members of the all-Island community who were born and raised in Menemsha, and it was a festive occasion. Cheers to David and Doug from us all.

Teena and Charlie Parton had a Chilmark moment this week while dining at a new restaurant in Hillside, N.Y., a short distance from their home in Western Mass. The chef, David Wurth, come forward to remind them that he remembered them from the days when they ran Alley’s Store in West Tisbury. He and his parents lived on South Road. They enjoyed a catch up and agreed that they all missed the Chilmark community and the ocean. David has become a successful chef.

Please mark your calendars for the Martha’s Vineyard Shellfish Group’s spring fundraiser scheduled for April 15 at the Chilmark Community Center.

We send condolences to the friends and family of Barbara Bell, who died at her Palm Beach home at the age of 90 on March 3. The funeral was at the Martha’s Vineyard Hebrew Center on March 6 and a memorial service was held in Scarsdale on March 7. Barbara, known as Bobby to her many friends, was an active and beloved member of the Chilmark seasonal community and will be missed by many. She is survived by her husband, Hank, and her sons Lawrence and Leonard and their families.

Congratulations to the Vineyard Gazette for the awards given by the annual New England Newspaper & Press Association. It is a special privilege to work with these talented folks.

I have noticed recently that someone is trimming back to the stonewalls along South Road...they look grand. Thanks to whoever is doing the clearing.

We should know who our new police chief will be by the time I write next week.

And I am not done with Roger Baldwin yet because I have some Chilmark stories coming in. Stay tuned.

Send Chilmark news to slaterjn@comcast.net.