On Memorial Wharf in Edgartown a tower of lobster pots has appeared for the last five years around the holidays, gathered, built and decorated by Sandy Fisher to resemble a Christmas tree, albeit a nautical one. This year’s tower includes more than 150 pots and stands over 18 feet tall.
“Some people said I should charge the town, but I said no way that would take the fun out of it,” Mr. Fisher said on a recent Wednesday afternoon, while putting some finishing touches on before the Christmas in Edgartown weekend begins. “I do it because I enjoy it.”
In past years, the tower has been made of conch pots. Mr. Fisher is a conch fisherman so he usually has lots of conch pots available and he says they look better. But his pots are still in the water as the season stretches longer this year, so he had to make do with his second choice.
The other difference this year is a large silver star on top, enclosing the number 76, which was the number Neil Estrella wore when playing football at the Martha’s Vineyard Regional High School. Mr. Estrella died in October at the age of 44 of pancreatic cancer.
The lobster pot tower and star are dedicated to Mr. Estrella. It also serves as a fundraiser for his family. He is survived by his wife Angela and their children Taybor, Ian and Ryan, as well as untold number of relatives (Mr. Fisher is a cousin) and friends.
“The idea is people can buy a buoy for $20 and hang it on the tower and write something on it too,” Mr. Fisher said. “All the money goes to Neil’s family.”
When word first went out the demand was immediate.
“People started saying I’ll take 10 buoys, I’ll take 20,” he said. “I don’t know how many I’ll have left for the weekend.”
Mr. Fisher said if he does run out of buoys everyone is invited to bring their own buoy to hang. Donations will, of course, be accepted.
The star was created and donated by Art Moran of Well Done Welding. “Neil was a good guy,” Mr. Moran said as he watched Mr. Fisher climb up the pot tower as nimbly as a squirrel to adjust the star. “I said I’d love to do something.”
Harbor master Charlie Blair was also on the wharf, surveying the lobster pot tower construction with one eye. His other eye was watching the men of Trademark wrestle the new flag pole in place before the weekend festivities. The original pole broke in a northeaster last March, and although the new one was finished in the spring, the work couldn’t get done during the busy season, Mr. Blair said.
“Twelve thousand pounds of cement was poured on Monday,” Mr. Blair added, pointing to where the pole would eventually be anchored at the entrance to Memorial Wharf. The wharf promises to be a busy place this weekend as it becomes the epicenter on Friday night for Christmas in Edgartown. Due to the renovations at the Harbor View Hotel the wharf is the official viewing stand for the lighting of the Edgartown Lighthouse at 6 p.m.
A few blocks up the road, above the doors of the Kelley House, a fruit mosaic stands out among the holly and evergreen that decorate nearly every other inch of town. Limes, lemons, apples — the vitamin C nearly leaps off the building, bringing to mind much warmer climates. Which, as it turns out, is exactly the idea.
“It’s called Over the Door Swag,” said Donnie Ethier, the engineering facilities manager at the hotel. He explained that it is a popular holiday tradition in Williamsburg, Va., which is where the new manager of the hotel, Scott Little, is from.
“We created it to surprise him,” Mr. Ethier said. “He just started the job last year and we thought he might be missing home.”
Mr. Ethier worked on the piece with his wife, hammering the fruit in place on a piece of wood and then setting it above the door. In the middle is a huge pineapple.
“That’s the symbol of hospitality,” Mr. Ethier said.
Not far away at Nevin Square, the elves of the Teddy Bear Suite were hard at work, decorating their new location at 17 Winter street. Since its inception the suite has taken place at the Harbor View Hotel, but the renovations put the hundreds of teddy bears, many of them human-sized, on the move as well.
The fundraiser is the work of Point B. Realty, and was owner Wendy Harman’s idea, who grew up with similar holiday creations in Seattle. This is the eighth year for the Teddy Bear Suite, which has raised $126,000 for the Martha’s Vineyard Boys & Girls Club. This year’s goal is $45,000. All the money raised goes to the after-school food program called Healthy Happy Kids which provides meal and snacks, along with food to take home, for all the club members.
“We are the little fundraiser that could,” Win Baker said, referring to its early days when the teddy bears could fit in one room, then took over two, then a whole cottage. This year, because of the smaller space, they instituted Teddy Around Town, where businesses donate funds to have a teddy bear in their window.
“I packed up a lot of colorful bears and each business picked the one whose face spoke to them,” Guinevere Cramer said.
The walk through town continued until dusk, with each block furthering a story of holiday good will that every Who down in Whoville would heartily embrace. Back at Memorial Wharf Mr. Fisher was still busy atop his tower of pots, the first strand of lights already twinkling in the dark. The flagpole was in its place too, secure and ready for the busy weekend, against a backdrop of wreathes and bunting along Memorial Wharf.
Mr. Fisher climbed down to street level to check out his progress. Asked how long it will remain, he smiled.
“New Year’s, I think. Or maybe this year I’ll ask the town to keep it up until Valentine’s Day. It’s from the heart.”
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