Cindy Carter has been a gracious host to friends that are coming to the Island to social distance from dense urban markets. Merele Williams Adkins and her son Titus from Brooklyn have stopped by recently. Merele is a very successful real estate agent in New York city but has also spent considerable time organizing exhibits and books on the artistic work of her brilliant late husband Terry Adkins. Terry was well known for his work across multiple media, including sculpture, drawing, photography, video and performance. Merele announced that she is working on her fifth book on Terry’s pioneering work. Their son Titus will soon be off to Los Angeles for the next chapter in his life.

As Merele heads out, dear friend Shauna Diggs from Detroit comes in with daughters Alexandra and Jacqueline. There will be some rest and relaxation before driving Harvard undergrad Alexandra to Cambridge. Like a number of co-eds this year, she is taking the year off from school and working in Boston. Auntie Cindy is enormously proud of Titus, Jacqueline and Alexandra.

Labor Day week also saw several elected officials coming to Oak Bluffs for a break from this long tough political season. Boston city councilor Kim Janey is also president of the council. She was here with sister Kai and her husband Chris Grant. The Grants are entrepreneurs who curate small business, artists and food purveyors under the brand Black Market.

Cousin Greg Janey, owner of a major Boston construction firm, always finds time to make it to the Vineyard YMCA before the family cookouts. Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms has been battling a stubborn virus in Atlanta and hosted hundreds in her city coming to honor the life and legacy of Vineyard favorite John Robert Lewis. It was nice to see her out walking off some of the pressures of her demanding job.

Boston Congresswoman Ayanna Pressley and husband Conan Harris were on Beach Road for just a few days before she headed back to Washington. Kim and Ayanna are close friends with Boston NAACP branch president Tanisha Sullivan who was here for a few weeks with her family and friends. Tanisha has been working hard with the Boston corporate sector to increase minority business procurement. Wishing her the best.

Friends and classmates of Democratic Vice Presidential nominee Kamala Harris continue to surface on the Vineyard. East Chop resident Odetta Rogers remembers well her Howard days with Ms. Harris. Odetta has had a 20-year career in the communications industry including serving for nine years as national correspondent for NBC News in the nation’s capitol. Odetta says even back in their school days it was evident that Kamala was filled with enormous political talent.

Everyone is so very proud of Dawn Davis, recently named editor in chief of Bon Appetit by publisher Condé Nast. Dawn is a member of the East Chop Tennis Club and they sent out effusive praise for Dawn.

This week and much of next week Joe Rotella and his crew from the Spencer Organ Company are installing the new Union Chapel organ, on the eve of the chapel’s 150th year. The chapel trustees are grateful to all who have contributed to pay for the organ reconstruction. Planning is well underway for the 2021 celebration.

Paradise on earth is living the Vineyard experience. Enjoy it as life is fleeting!