The Portuguese American Club hosted its annual Holy Ghost Festival this weekend, including a Saturday night feast and a Sunday morning parade. The weekend honors Queen Isabella of Aragon, who gave to charity and fed the poor.
The parade was supposed to begin at Oak Bluffs Steamship Authority terminal at 11 a.m. on Sunday, but was delayed a half hour due to heat. Spectators and participants gathered at the terminal and along Vineyard avenue.
But Marisa Estrella and her nephew Brian were back at the P.A. Club. They had a job to do.
“I’m running the balloon darts and the duck game,” said Brian, staple gun in hand.
The grounds of the P.A. Club were complete with a musical stage, carnival games and large tents.
“We’ve been doing this forever,” Ms. Estrella said. “My mother makes the chicken and my brother makes the sopa. Everyone gets a bowl of sopa in honor of Queen Isabella. And it’s some good sopa too.”
Proceeds from the food, games and auction items go to the P.A. Club Scholarships, helping to fund college educations for numerous Islanders.
Ms. Estrella and Brian wore shirts emblazoned with the flag of Portugal and Queen Isabella’s crown.
“Queen Isabella melted her crown and gave all of her riches to the poor, which is why we honor her,” said Ms. Estrella.
Back on the parade route, replicas of Queen Isabella’s scepter, crown and platter were marched through the streets. At parade’s end, minister Deon Thomas blessed the crown. Trucks carried children in their white cotton Sunday best. Dancers from Grupo Folclorico Madeirense delighted the crowd with dance moves, flags and traditional Portuguese dress.
The Baystate New Bedford Marching Band led the procession, energizing the crowd with drums and horns. The procession marched through the Sacred Heart Cemetery, where wreaths were laid to honor deceased members of the P.A. club and their families.
Lester Baptiste had set up half an hour earlier with a cooler of water to observe the procession with friends.
“It’s a really beautiful thing,” he said. “I’ve been walking in this parade my entire life. I was in the service, as was my father, and so is my son. I used to play taps on the silver trumpet in the parade every year.”
Mr. Baptiste was accompanied by his friends, Charlie and Mary Ann Cournoyer. Mr. and Mrs. Cournoyer recently moved off-Island, from Vineyard Haven to Pocasset. Despite the distance, Mrs. Cournoyer has not forgotten the P.A. Club.
“I miss how things used to be,” she said. “So much has changed, but I wouldn’t miss the Holy Ghost Festival for the whole world. Of course we came back to the Island for it. It’s all about everybody helping one another. I’d like everybody to remember that.”
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