Editors, Vineyard Gazette:

In the early 1970s, I was looking for a job. Everett Poole needed a secretary. I applied, and he hired me, maybe because we were both progeny of whaling captains.

Everett was a remarkable man. He had a shrewd and piercing intelligence that he often covered over with dry Yankee humor. He was a natural leader, as demonstrated by his having been Chilmark’s town moderator for 45 years.

Everett could cut to the chase, just wanting to get the job done. He played by the rules and he expected others to follow suit — if they didn’t things didn’t go well, to say the least.

His work ethic was unsurpassed. He would start before dawn and continue through the day and into the night, day after day. He was amazing. He was deeply proud of his Chilmark and Menemsha roots, always caring and concerned about life in town and on the docks where he learned his work ethic as a boy. Everett Poole was who he was; and he was always a gentleman to me.

The Vineyard community has suffered a major loss with the death of Everett Poole. May he continue to soar.

Barry Nevin

Edgartown