With the “me too” movement front and center these days, I would like to go against the grain and give kudos to six men (and two women) on the Vineyard who came to my rescue this past Sunday.

I was driving an empty trailer behind my Subaru Forester to pick up my dinghy in Tashmoo to take home for the winter when I looked in the rearview mirror as I was making my way around the roundabout. To my great surprise, I saw one of the tires from the trailer fly off the axle, bounce in the air and land on the side of the road. Luckily there was a gravel patch after the roundabout which I turned into and parked.

As I got out of my car, I saw a man in a black truck go around the roundabout, stop and pick up my tire. And, yes, he brought it back to me. Since the five lug nuts were missing, there was nothing more that man could do so I thanked him profusely and he went on his way. Kudos to man number one.

What to do now? I unhooked the trailer from the car and left it on the side of the road as I meandered back to my home looking for the five lug nuts on the way. No luck. Then back to the trailer I went, and knowing that Napa was not open on a Sunday, I decided it would be best to leave the trailer on the side of the road overnight and deal with it again on Monday. As I was unscrewing the lug nuts from the second tire on the trailer, man number two showed up and asked if he could help me. I ranted and raved about the tire flying off and he assured me that things like that happen which made me feel better. And since there was nothing more that he could do, he took off. Then just as I had gotten the second tire off the trailer and put it in the car, a third man showed up. I told him my story and he informed me that West Marine carries lug nuts, but that they close at 4 p.m.

“Wonderful,” I said to man number three, and while thanking him profusely I took off for West Marine. It was now 3:45.

When I arrived at West Marine the woman in charge was bringing in the kayaks, so I asked her if she had any lug nuts. She didn’t think so, but we headed to the back of the store and there hanging on a hook was one bag of lug nuts and lo and behold they matched perfectly the ones I had in my pocket. With great hopes of actually getting to Tashmoo and my dinghy, I hurried back to the trailer.

As I was lifting the trailer in the air and struggling to align the wheel to get the lug nuts back into their position man number four showed up. And believe it or not he told me he was in the car repair business and he fixes tires all the time. So he lifted up the trailer while I tried to get the lug nuts in place. Then his wife arrived on the scene and the three of us got the job done, but it took awhile. Wow. I asked him if I could get some lobsters in appreciation for him and his wife’s dinner, but he declined and they drove off.

With that, I headed directly to Tashmoo and upon arrival man number five showed up and volunteered to help turn the trailer around and back it down the ramp. His name was John and he said he remembered me and knew my husband. I thanked him and went to row the dinghy around to the trailer. As I was lifting the boat onto the trailer a woman on the dock asked if she could help and a young man asked as well and within minutes the boat was loaded and I was all set.

My dinghy Row vs Wade is now safely in my driveway at home thanks to these six men and two women. Chivalry is not dead on this Island!

Alice Goyert

Oak Bluffs