On Sunday morning, Kayla Bruni carried St. Isabel’s crown straight out in front of her, marching carefully next to Annie Combra and Teagan D’Arcy, who carried a scepter and an orb, also traditional Azorean Catholic instruments. The girls were a centerpiece of the Martha’s Vineyard Holy Ghost parade, wearing the white dresses of their recent First Holy Communion, and representing St. Isabel, the sixth queen of Portugal who in the 13th century defied her king’s orders to stop helping the poor. St. Isabel also allowed peasants and children to try on her crown. Kayla’s replica crown was a symbol of that kindness.
Festivities for the Holy Ghost Festival lasted all weekend, beginning with a barbecue, music and games on Saturday evening. The parade on Sunday morning began at the Oak Bluffs ferry terminal and was followed by Portuguese folk dancers, food and a live auction at the Portuguese American Club.
The Holy Ghost festival is held throughout the world and has been a feature of summer on the Vineyard since the 1920s, decades before the Portuguese American Club formed in 1942.
Vice president of the club, Jack Law said the members’ dedication has ensured the club’s survival from the beginning.
“They used materials from the town dump to build the first meeting hall,” he said.
As the parade traveled down Circuit avenue in Oak Bluffs, Mr. Law surveyed the scene. Many of the club members held wreaths of red flowers.
“The wreaths are a traditional Portuguese Catholic tradition. They are our way of blessing the dead,” Mr. Law said.
The parade wound down Circuit avenue over to Vineyard avenue and then to the cemetery for the laying of the wreaths. It then continued on Belden avenue, turned left on Pacific avenue, and ended at the Portuguese American Club, where the celebration continued. Oak Bluffs pedestrians lined the sidewalks to cheer as the parade went by.
Kaye Manning traveled the parade route by Jeep, honking the horn as she went. At 92 years old, Ms. Manning is the P.A. club’s oldest member. In her more than 50 years as a member, she has served as a board member and secretary.
Ms. Manning said she is proud of the way the club has helped its community over the years, and in turn, she has noticed that many of those people come back to celebrate during the Holy Ghost Festival.
“I like to see all the people come back to the Island,” she said. “Some we haven’t seen in years come back.”
The parade was led by the Oak Bluffs police, and featured the Bay State Band, the Holy Ghost board of directors, club members donning traditional Portuguese clothing and Portuguese dancers, who also performed at the party later on.
“It’s all very colorful,” Ms. Manning said.
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