The temperatures have dipped to the 50s most of the week but there is an abundance of rhododendrons in full blood across the Vineyard. A few drops of scattered rain to water the gardens. Only a few squid are in Menemsha Bight at this time.

Congratulations to the entire graduating class of 2015 of Martha’s Vineyard Regional High School as they graduate on Sunday. All the best to Josie Iadicicco and Paul Henry Jeffers-Mayhew. Josie, daughter of Terry Iadicicco Lowe and Heath Widdiss, will attend New York University in the fall and Paul, son of Audrey Jeffers and Jon Mayhew, is off to UMass Boston. Josie will graduate in the top 20 of the graduating seniors and recently won the President’s Award for Outstanding Academic Excellence, a Citizenship Award, and consistent achievement in honor roll status for the first three quarters of her senior year. Paul Henry was also the recipient of a Citizenship Award.

The Vineyard Gazette and the Martha’s Vineyard Media Group will celebrate the winners of the 2015 Best of the Vineyard Awards at the season-opening party sponsored by Martha’s Vineyard Magazine this evening. Doors open at 6:30 p.m. at the Loft at Dreamland in Oak Bluffs. Ceremonies begin at 7:30 p.m. Tickets are $30.

The annual Summer Opening Party will be held this evening from 5 to 7 p.m. at the Martha’s Vineyard Museum in Edgartown. An exciting time to celebrate the opening of the Lois Mailou Jones Selected Works and Identifying Eisenstaedt. Dr. Chris Chapman, trustee of the Lois Mailou Jones estate, will briefly speak about the artist’s life and legacy. The Cooke House will open for the season that night, and this will be the first opportunity to purchase the new book Island Stories: Highlights from the Martha’s Vineyard Museum, which will be unveiled for the first time. Free and open to all.

On Tuesday, the Martha’s Vineyard Museum will welcome all at the volunteers kick-off from 3 to 4 p.m. at the museum. Learn about upcoming events and get more involved. New volunteers are welcome to the free event.

The West Tisbury School fifth grade class is holding a cow chip bingo fundraiser for their Shenandoah trip. If you attend, a fenced-in field will be marked with 100 numbered squares. Each square is sold for $50. A cow will be turned loose at Flat Point Farm on Saturday, June 27 at 10 a.m. The cow determines the winner by making its first deposit on one of the squares. The winner will take home $1,000. You do not need to be present to win. For further information, please call Liz Oliver at 508-939-0616.

The Martha’s Vineyard Chapter of the Massachusetts Society of Genealogists will present Tracing Your Genealogy Through DNA. Have you ever wondered what your DNA might reveal about your ancestry? You are invited to a lecture by genealogist Clinton Richmond on Wednesday, June 17 at 7 p.m. at the Family History Center at Merchant Mart on State Road in Tisbury across from the Black Dog Bakery. Admission is free. Clinton is an independent researcher specializing in local and family history, and he has written and published historical guidebooks on Boston political history and on the Mohawk Trail. He has been working with DNA techniques for more than five years and will speak on the fast-growing field of genetic genealogy, which provides a new way to discover your ancestry from ethnicity to filling out your family tree. He just happens to be related to MV Chapter President Marna Waller, and found her through DNA. For further information, please call 508-627-9148.

Mrs. Betty Joslow has enjoyed a recent visit from her three daughters, Laurie, Wendy, and Nancy, during and following her recent hospitalizations at Martha’s Vineyard Hospital. Betty will be honored tomorrow at Aquinnah Public Library for her 18 years as a library trustee. Stop by the Aquinnah Library between 1 and 3 p.m. to honor Betty.

Noah James Manning returned home this past week after celebrating the 82nd birthday of his grandmother Joan Kistner at a large party at their Poughkeepsie home. About 100 family members and friends gathered on their lawn to celebrate Joanie’s amazing medical recovery this winter. We all gathered from New York, New Jersey, Massachusetts, Florida, Pennsylvania, and points in between for a joyous celebration. It was a pleasure to meet a few more branches of their family tree, especially the historians and genealogists. Cheers from us all! Noah was accompanied by his parents Paul and Theresa, his sister Kayla, his niece Kylee and his other grandmother—yours truly.

Av and Dora Morrow have arrived at DoraLu Manor for their sixth decade of summers in Aquinnah.

Welcome home to Conrad and Jane Neumann who arrived for the season on Monday afternoon. I was delighted to be a part of their welcome home party upon their arrival at his sister Jane Slater’s for the evening before settling into their home for the summer.

Congratulations to Arlen Roth who was recently inducted into the Blues Hall of Fame at the B. B. King Blues Club in Manhattan. Arlen performed Night Life and was accompanied by his daughter Lexie. Arlen was delighted to see Paul Manning on his recent trip to New York.

Congratulations to Pearl Vercruysse, daughter of James Vercruysse and Layne Bazzy, who recently received awards for excellence in English and the Massachusetts Foreign Language Award for excellence in French.

Happy Birthday wishes this week to Elmer Vanderhoop as he celebrates Flag Day on June 14 and shares the day with Mike Mayrand and Madeline Fisher. Sylvia Lima Capelli parties on June 15 and shares the day with Kristina Ann Kestenbaum Williams Hook Leslie, who celebrates a major milestone while visiting her daughters in Los Angeles this week.

A very special happy ninth birthday to my grandson Noah James Manning as he celebrates on June 16. Amy Lilavois will also party on June 16. Tabitha Lynn Rose parties on June 17 and shares the day with Irena Gerhard, Nancy Leport and Gregory Borchow. Ashley Johnson will be 10 years old on June 18. Scott Mullin parties on June 19 while at work at Brickyard. Elliott Berz will be 10 years old on June 19.

Send Aquinnah news to junemanning152@gmail.com.