Editors, Vineyard Gazette:

Last fall you published a letter from me thanking our Island community for their support of the American Heroes Fishing Challenge. Now in its fifth year and organized by the Nixon family and Beach Plum Inn, the heroes challenge is a tournament within the Annual Martha’s Vineyard Striped Bass and Bluefish Derby. Injured active duty military travel from Walter Reed and Fort Belvoir military hospitals to the Island for a week to fish our waters. Some are just days out of surgery, while others take their first steps outdoors on new legs. All experience the healing magic that is Martha’s Vineyard.

This year’s heroes challenge was filmed by a documentary crew led by Islanders and film producers Robert Nixon, Todd Wendel and Sarah Guinan Nixon. The crew filmed throughout the Island, aboard fishing charters, on the beaches and at the nightly derby weigh in. The one-hour special premieres Memorial Day, Monday, May 27, at 10 p.m. on the National Geographic Channel.

I encourage Islanders and their families to tune into this program. It features original music by John Mayer and narration by our own Lenny Clarke. Seeing the familiar faces and places of our home is always special and this documentary is particularly meaningful as once again we have come together as a community to make magic happen.

Amy Coffey, Edgartown