Mary Oliver
The wind wags its many tails. And in the evening the piled firewood shifts a little, longing to be on its way. —Mary Oliver
October 12, 2007
Analysis Questions Apparent Increase In Vineyard Teen Suicide Attempts
Statistics may not always be reliable, but the writing on the wall seemed pretty legible: many teenagers are having a hard time on the Island. This year’s Island-wide youth survey showed a spike in the number of students who said they attempted suicide in the last year and Martha’s Vineyard Hospital records showed a spike…
Historic Smith House Says Last Goodbye
In one fast-moving day, the Smith house on the corner of South Summer and High streets in Edgartown was torn down and trucked away. A new house will take its place. The tired old house was built after the Civil War around 1870, give or take a year. In the days before the demolition, paint…
After Words: Sun Porch Starts Salons
Sun Porch Books at 45 Circuit avenue in Oak Bluffs, now in its fifth autumn of operation, is bowing to America’s love of books and coffee under a single roof. Currently in the bookstore, three tables with chairs occupy the front of the store, and a portion of the counter holds coffee, tea, hot chocolate,…
Chilmark
JANE N. SLATER 508-645-3378 (slaterjn@comcast.net) All of Chilmark was saddened to learn of the death last Saturday of longtime Menemsha fisherman Lenny Jason. He came to Menemsha many years ago as a fisherman from New Bedford. He liked Chilmark and soon moved his young family to property here where he built his home and many…
Studying Abroad
Studying Abroad Alyssa Fitzpatrick, daughter of Thomas R. and Lisa Fitzpatrick of Oak Bluffs, is spending the fall 2007 semester studying abroad in Turks and Caicos, British West Indies through a program run by Saint Michael’s College in Colchester, Vt. Ms. Fitzpatrick, a graduate of Martha’s Vineyard Regional High School, is a senior biology major…
Vineyard CROP Walk Is Set for Sunday, Oct. 21
Vineyard CROP Walk Is Set for Sunday, Oct. 21 A Vineyard fall tradition, the annual CROP Walk, steps out from St. Augustine’s Church on Franklin street in Vineyard Haven at 2 p.m. on Sunday, Oct. 21. Walkers will follow a 10-kilometer route along Beach Road to Trinity Church on the Camp Ground in Oak Bluffs…
East Chop
RICK HERRICK 508-693-8065 herricklr@verizon.net In my professional life, I worked as a political scientist. One aspect of public opinion political scientists like to study is issue recognition. I began to wonder if there was anything about living in East Chop that might affect issue recognition. With that in mind, I polled my neighbors on several…
Still On Time
Still On Time The Chappaquiddick Ferry, that tidy, profitable and often forgotten enterprise which plies the tideswept entrance to the Edgartown harbor and is the lifeline for a hundred-odd families who call the outpost of Chappaquiddick home, is due for a change in ownership soon.
Classic Film Set in Watts Screens on Island
A classic film, by turns funny, sad and profound, Killer of Sheep offers a sympathetic and humane glimpse into inner-city life — and this affecting film screens with a restored print on Saturday, Oct. 13 at 7:30 p.m. in the Katharine Cornell Theatre in Vineyard Haven. Killer of Sheep examines the black Los Angeles ghetto…
Gazette Chronicle: Anglers and Their Fish
Anglers and Their Fish By Red Smith, Pulitzer Prize-winning sports columnist for the New York Times and a Chilmark seasonal visitor for nearly three decades. From the October, 1982 files of the Vineyard Gazette, originally appearing in the September 23, 1974 edition of the New York Times.
Beacons of History
Beacons of History They stand tall and straight on the horizon, an enduring symbol of the Island’s long and rich maritime history. Viewed from a distance, the Edgartown and East Chop lighthouses convey a sense of strength and of purpose. Until recently, however, closer looks would have inspired less appreciation. In the nineteen eighties, the…
Peace Rally Backers Will Sponsor Buses to Boston
Want to be part of a big peace rally but aren’t interested in traveling to Washington, D.C.? Then go to Boston on Oct. 27. The Out of Iraq rally is being organized by United for Peace and Justice, and will coincide with rallies in Washington, New York city and many other U.S. cities. Cape Codders…
Island Hospital Will Close, Shift Main Parking Lot
Beginning Wednesday, Oct. 10, the main parking lot currently in use in front of the Martha’s Vineyard Hospital and Windemere will be closed and relocated to the parking area closer to the Beach Road entrance. Parking for people with handicaps will be available off the doctors’ wing main entrance, and parking for cardiopulmonary and dialysis…
Oct. 5: Warm and Mostly Sunny
Friday, Oct. 5: Warm and mostly sunny. Temperature rises to the high 70s. Southwest wind picks up in the afternoon. Steady breeze by sunset. A thick bank of fog rolls in over Aquinnah and Chilmark in the early evening. Maritime damp, an evening of sipping hot cider.
Prostate Cancer
Prostate Cancer The next meeting of the Martha’s Vineyard Prostate Cancer Support Group will be on Wednesday, Oct. 17, at 10:30 a.m. at Martha’s Vineyard Community Services (across from the high school) in the middle building, in the downstairs board room. Any and all are welcome. Bring family, friends and wives. A reference library is…
Rayssa Arrives
Rayssa Arrives Cristiane and Rubons Moraes of Edgartown announce the birth of Rayssa Pessotti Moraes on Oct. 6 at the Martha’s Vineyard Community Hospital. Rayssa weighed 10 pounds, 14 ounces at birth.
Court Decision Might Affect CPA Spending
A Middlesex superior court judge ruled late last month that the town of Newton may not renovate two large recreational parks using funds from the Community Preservation Act (CPA) because the parklands were not acquired with CPA funds.
Leonard Jason Sr.: Man of the Waterfront
As I knew Lenny Jason he was a working man’s man, a man of strong opinions which he aired freely to anyone who would listen. He always had the working man in mind and especially the fisherman. I remember when Lenny first came to the Island to Menemsha, a town he loved, and made it…
Conference Hopes Turn To Atlantic Coast League
Martha’s Vineyard Regional High School is exploring whether an opportunity exists to move its sports program, including football, to the Atlantic Coast League following the resignation of North Quincy, Quincy and Whitman-Hanson high schools from the league next fall. Michael Joyce, athletic director at the Island high school, said this week that letters have been…
Aquinnah
JUNE MANNING 508-645-2574 (lthslnks@gis.net) Al Alley of Boston recently visited with his father Forrest Alley and with mom Emily Packish Frank in Vineyard Haven. Joseph Bozyczko, his wife Vicky and their children Michael, Mikayla and Matthew were at their Lighthouse Road home over the long weekend.
SSA May Consider Increasing Fares
Steamship Authority governors will consider a reworked budget for next year, possibly including some fare increases to offset high fuel costs, when they meet on the Vineyard next week. A draft budget at last month’s meeting was sent back to the drawing board after doubts were expressed about fuel cost estimates. The document assumed oil…
Living With Alzheimer’s Disease: Families Cope in Many Ways
My father in law Bernie Cournoyer died two weeks ago. A few days before his death, he asked about his garden, wished us well and shook hands. It was sad to see him go, but his body gave out on him. Not his mind.
Reporter’s Notebook: Riding the Ferry Over Last Weekend of Tourist Season
A walk down Vineyard Haven’s leaf-strewn Main street this week, with the rain-stained shingles of shopfronts announcing clearance sales and new opening hours, will tell you that summer is finally, officially, done with. For many on the Island Columbus Day marks the true seasonal watershed, bringing with it the final bulk batch of beachcomber tourists.…
Special Education Needs Rise In Island Preschool Programs
An increase in special needs students is driving Vineyard schools superintendent Dr. James H. Weiss to seek hundreds of thousands of dollars for a new combined elementary program targeting children with autism or severe communication disorders.
Weather Predictions
A Maine naturalist named Norm Famous, whom I mentioned in this past week’s column, recently sent me another e-mail about birds. This one contained a report from a researcher named Ron Pittaway up in Ontario, who issues an annual prediction for what various species of North American finches and some other non-finch species will be…
Old House for Sale, Down Memory Lane
The Lash House is for sale. For a small group of people, that single sentence carries paragraphs if not pages of meaning.
Community Church Names Interim Pastor
Faith Community Church of Edgartown recently called the Rev. Jeffrey Winter to be the interim pastor. Reverend Winter is a graduate of Susquehanna University, Selinsgrove, Pa., and Gordon-Conwell Seminary in South Hamilton. He received his doctor of ministry degree from McCormick Seminary in Chicago. Reverend Winter is an ordained minister in the Presbyterian Church USA.…
Announcing Kellry
Announcing Kellry Kenia Aredes and Jean M. da Silva of Vineyard Haven announce the birth of a daughter, Kellry Marques Aredes, born Oct. 4 at the Martha’s Vineyard Community Hospital. She weighed 7 pounds, 4 ounces at birth.
West Tisbury
JOHN S. ALLEY 508-693-2950 (alleys@vineyard.net)
Rising Sea Portends Underwater Real Estate
Here is a sobering fact: we live on an Island and the sea is rising. The consensus among coastal scientists is that our children or grandchildren will see a sea level rise of about one metre in this century, an estimate that does not even take into account the rapid rate of melting glaciers. The…
Letters to the Editor
CHILDREN LEFT BEHIND Editors, Vineyard Gazette: Is the Island’s special needs education program in need of special attention? Our community considers itself to be enlightened and engaged. We pride ourselves on inclusiveness. But is it to a fault? When it comes to special needs students who need all possible resources focused on them in a…
Women Drivers Fail Road Test More Often
Women are failing their driver’s license road tests at nearly twice the rate as men on the Vineyard, according to Registry of Motor Vehicles (RMV) data from January to September 2007.
While 24 per cent of males failed their road test on the Vineyard so far this year, 43 per cent of…
Vineyard Haven
NANCY GARDELLA 508-693-3308 (vhavenvgazette@yahoo.com)
Real Estate Testing Will Come to the Vineyard
Real Estate Testing Will Come to the Vineyard Dukes Academy, a real estate school on the Island, has obtained approval for the Vineyard as a licensed test center for the state’s real estate salesperson and broker licensing exam. The test is scheduled for Saturday, Nov. 17. Eligible candidates should get in touch with Dukes Academy…
Scott Lively Is Most Unlikely Farmer Green
Prepare yourself before meeting organic beef farmer Scott Lively. You may never want to eat fast food again. “So you put the trim into a tray, dump the tray into a bucket, and every few hours that bucket gets turned into a bag of meat,” explains Mr. Lively, describing the journey of a hamburger from…
Oak Bluffs
HOLLY NADLER 508-693-3880 (sunporch@vineyard.net) Once again the Nobel Prize Committee has ignored the Oak Bluffs community. And what’s up with awarding the physics jackpot to those two microchip guys? We’ve got to start asking ourselves a key question, just as we do when we’re shopping in a frivolous manner: Do we really need this? Well,…
Chefs Make the Vineyard Their Oyster
Chef Chris Schlesinger of the East Coast Grill & Raw Bar in Cambridge is a self-described purist. His menus feature fish caught in local waters and produce from nearby farms. He offers what is in season and the dishes rotate accordingly. One constant is the oyster.
Magistrate Reduces Hefty Fines In Case Against Joseph Alosso
A state administrative magistrate has set aside most of the fines assessed by the state Department of Environmental Protection against Joseph N. and Evelyn R. Alosso for alleged septic violations at their home in Oak Bluffs. In October 2004, the DEP had sought a $28,310 civil penalty against the Alossos for the alleged violations at…
NBC Trains Television Spotlight On the Vineyard Football Team
It’s show time. No, not the NBC special on the Vineyard high school football team that will air nationally twice next month, though the Island football community got a kick out of NBC camera crews trailing every facet of practice, the locker room, then filming a solid 35-20 win over bulky Hull High School last…
Bon Vivants’ Affair Offers Boat Rides, Too
This evening kicks off the first annual Martha’s Vineyard Harvest Festival, a weekend event celebrating the sea, the farm and the vine. The festival, sponsored by the Edgartown Board of Trade, will showcase Island and mainland chefs using Island-grown produce alongside wines from around the world. “We wanted to create an event unique to the…
On Home Stretch, Fishing Derby Hits Final Familiar Fever Pitch
One is a magic number as the 62nd annual derby enters its final day of an event with big numbers, bountiful fishing and a short ride through controversy.
Vineyard Gardener
By LYNNE IRONS I am enjoying a big glass of grape juice at this moment. If I could have a do-over in the gardening world, I would not have constructed a grape arbor, however pleasing to the eye. Mine is made from locust posts and very attractive. I would have to be 4 feet, 5…
Island Theatre Workshop Kicks off Children’s Class
Island Theatre Workshop, Inc. announces the start of its Island children’s winter drama season. Winter Children’s Theatre (formerly Apprentice Players) begins on Monday, Oct. 22, after school at Grace Church parish hall.
Mindfulness on Tape
Mindfulness on Tape A taped Mindfulness Meditation practice session by Chas Di Capua begins at 9 a.m. on Saturday, Oct. 13 at the Unitarian-Universalist Chapel at 238 Main street in Vineyard Haven. The session ends at 10:15 a.m. For more information, call 508-693-2827.
Wampanoags Gather for Cranberry Day
For the Wampanoag Tribe of Gay Head (Aquinnah) on Tuesday, Cranberry Day was more about culture and heritage than the pragmatic crop-gathering aspects of 100 years ago. Several dozen tribal members gathered around a fire all day on a sandy spot in the dunes at Lobsterville beach for communal and historic sharing, That’s an appropriate…
Slow Train Coming Arrives Again at Playhouse
An encore performance of Maureen Hourihan’s trilogy of short plays, Slow Train Coming, preceded by Arlene Bodge reading selections from her writings about memory loss, should make for a special evening at the Vineyard Playhouse this weekend. Ms. Hourihan’s theatrical tribute to her father, who had Alzheimer’s, is being performed ahead of the Vineyard’s annual…
Chappy
MARGARET KNIGHT 508-627-8894 (margaret02539@yahoo.com) Our island is happily soaking up the recent rain, but I’m sad to see the end of lovely sunny days warm enough to swim without freezing to death. Daylight savings doesn’t go into effect until Nov. 4.
The Fishermen
By MARK ALAN LOVEWELL Rick Karney, director of the Martha’s Vineyard Shellfish Group, returned last week from an international conference on invasive sea squirts, where he and one of his staff were both speakers and participants. There has been plenty of discussion on the Vineyard about invasive foreign plants in the Island landscape; offshore, the…
School of Rock Comes Out of Woods
New music is coming out of the woods tonight. Students of the Contemporary Music Center, a college-level music industry program that thrives in West Tisbury under the radar of most Islanders, are ready to rock the Friday night house at Outerland.
Wind Turbines Are New Trend
Emily Bramhall had already replaced the incandescent light bulbs at home and in her store with low-watt fluoresecents, helped her daughter buy a hybrid car and taken other steps to reduce her carbon footprint. Now she wanted to go further, and start making her own electricity. But, as Kermit the Frog once sang, it’s not…
Last Fling for Flowers
Chloris is having her last hurrah and it is quite a party. No, Chloris is not a bride-to-be during the busy fall Vineyard wedding season having a bachelorette party in Oak Bluffs. She is the Greek goddess of flowers and while she has given us a showy summer and fall, her reign of blossoms is…
Artist’s Bird’s-Eye Views Reveal Underwater World
Dick Sherman hosts a reception for his Aerial Seabottom Photography exhibition on Sunday, Oct. 14 from 4 to 6 p.m. Featherstone Center for the Arts on Barnes Road Oak Bluffs. The show opens on Wednesday, Oct. 10, and continues daily from noon to 4 p.m. The exhibition is all photographs shot from an airplane —…
