Dylan Thomas
The birds of the winged trees flying my name Above the farms and the white horses I rose in rainy autumn And walked abroad in a shower of all my days. – Dylan Thomas
April 8, 2011
Breaking News: Thursday, April 14 – Challengers Win in Oak Bluffs
Oak Bluffs voters today elected two challengers, former businessmen Walter Vail and restaurateur Mike Santoro, to the board of selectmen, replacing a pair of two-term selectmen, Ron DiOrio and board chairman Duncan Ross.
In Edgartown, voters made a clean sweep of the library board of trustees, electing Julie Lively, Deanna Ahern-Laird and Bob…
News Update: Wednesday, April 13 – Safe Thief Says He Is Sorry
One of two defendants who stole the safe that contained the life savings of an elderly Oak Bluffs man paid a visit to the Gazette on Wednesday to say that he was sorry for the crime and to correct the record on the facts in the case which he said had been portrayed inaccurately by…
News Update: Wednesday, April 13 – Bare-Bones Budget Passes in Oak Bluffs; Ballot Box Will Decide the Rest
Oak Bluffs voters approved a nearly $25 million budget at Tuesday night’s annual town meeting. But the budget contained cuts to services and personnel, and if passed alone, town administrator Michael Dutton explained, would leave paving undone and no salaries for a new town finance director, two teaching aides at the Oak Bluffs school and…
News Update: Tuesday, April 12 – First Step Toward Beer, Wine in West Tisbury
A sharply divided gathering of 270 West Tisbury voters agreed to take the first step to allow the sale of beer and wine in restaurants on Tuesday night. It was an annual town meeting when nothing seemed to come easily and voters bogged down frequently, and when it came time to vote on the beer…
News Update: Tuesday, April 12 – Tisbury Steps Out as Green Community
Tisbury voters will have to convene for at least one more night, after Tuesday night’s meeting failed to even begin consideration of the 37 articles on its annual town meeting warrant.
Instead, the meeting spent three hours working its way through the warrant for the special town meeting which was supposed to be…
News Update: Tuesday, April 12 – Edgartown Voters Approve Library Move
With little discussion, Edgartown voters unanimously said yes to moving the public library to the old Edgartown School at Tuesday night’s annual town meeting. Despite lingering questions about what would happen to the historic Carnegie building and the dilapidated Warren House, cheers erupted when the article passed to accept state grant monies to fund half…
Breaking News: Monday, April 11 – Two Arrested, Money Missing in Safe Heist
Oak Bluffs police announced on Monday that they have arrested a pair who robbed a well-known elderly Oak Bluffs man of his life savings last month, although they have not recovered all the money. Police said $85,000 was stolen from the man, whose name is being withheld, but only about $37,000 has been recovered.
…
News Update: Monday, April 11 – Mr. Vincent Appears in Court
Edgartown attorney Edward W. (Peter) Vincent Jr. appeared in district court this morning on charges of larceny by embezzlement over $250 and fiduciary embezzlement. His arraignment on criminal charges was postponed until May 19, after his attorney, Richard, Piazza, this morning cited an agreement on the continuance with the attorney general.
Mr. Vincent’s…
Breaking News: Friday, April 8 – Attorney Vincent Arrested, Jailed
Edward W. (Peter) Vincent Jr. was arrested on criminal charges by Edgartown police on Friday afternoon. Mr. Vincent is now in the Edgartown house of correction, where he will be held for the weekend pending arraignment in district court, Edgartown police confirmed.
The arrest took place at 4:15 p.m. Friday; Mr. Vincent was…
Felix Neck Citizen Science Coordinator Is Set for Study
Caitlin Borck has joined Mass Audubon at Felix Neck as the new seasonal coastal waterbird and citizen science coordinator.
She earned her master’s of science degree in biology with an emphasis in applied ecology at eastern Kentucky University in Richmond, Ky., and her bachelor of science degree in biology from the University of…
First Aid, CPR Training
First Aid, CPR Training
American Red Cross, Cape Cod and Islands Chapter, will hold an adult CPR/AED and first aid class on April 16 at the YMCA. The course covers knowledge and skills to prevent, recognize and provide basic care for cardiac and breathing emergencies and Automatic External Defibrillator (AED) use. The CPR/AED…
Theory of Relativity Talk Looking for Mass Appeal
The theory of relativity is a tough one to wrap your head around. Something about time and space and perhaps even a spacetime continuum thrown in. Something to do with all of this being relative too. But to what?
That pounding in the head is ignorance landing a heavy blow.
But…
Tennis Teams Rocking, Softball Squad Rolling, Lacrosse Rebuilding
Though the weather has been slow to warm, spring sports are heating up at the regional high school.
The boys’ lacrosse team took a 16-3 loss to Weston, last year’s number eight MIAA seed, in their first home game of the season. Playing tough nonleague opponents, however, is a crucial part of the lacrosse program,…
Tea Lane Enters Garden of Eden
Matt Tobin has been a horticulturist for 40 years and organically inclined for just as long, but he has more than a green thumb.
“I’m very conscious about organics and being green, but I like to call it bright green. A lot of green isn’t so green, it has a lot of petroleum…
Nica Sylvia
Nica Sylvia
Nica Sylvia of West Tisbury, a junior majoring in civil engineering at Worcester Polytechnic Institute, recently completed an intense, hands-on research project in Melbourne, Australia. The project was titled Building Sustainable Behaviour: Interactive Displays for Youth Empowerment.
Beating Cancer One Step at a Time
Each year 200,000 women and men are diagnosed with breast cancer in the United States alone. Erin Kokoszka has felt this statistic personally. “My maternal grandmother and all of her sisters have been affected by breast cancer,” she said. “My grandmother is a survivor and her other living sister is a survivor, but she’s lost…
Food, Music and Fellowship, Potluck Jam Delivers Full Meal
I really had no idea what to expect as I approached the Chilmark Community Center a little after 7 p.m. on Saturday night, but I hoped it would be like days of old when — as teenagers — we would make the long trek from down-Island to square-dance or listen to folksingers like Jesse Benton…
Larger Libraries for Larger Community
The current Edgartown Library building was last expanded in 1975, when our population numbered about 1,500 people. Today our year-round population is a bit more than 4,000, straining the quality of library services for all its users — most of all, the children for whom a good public library can open whole worlds of new…
Larger Libraries for Larger Community
When the West Tisbury Library opened in 1993, it was already too small. A frantic patchwork of low-cost space solutions over the years have never kept up with growing demand for library services. For well over a decade we have struggled with a severe shortage of space for patrons, materials, programs and staff. Today we…
Sad Farewell to Builder of Lives
The following reader comments were posted to the story about the death of Michael Ovios, a former longtime teacher in the Tisbury School.
My condolences to your family. I was honored to have Mr. Ovios as a teacher starting in 1975. I can honestly say he started me on my joy of building…
Letters to the Editor
TOWN MEETING TIME
Editors, Vineyard Gazette:
I am of the firm belief that by virtue of the fact that you know about the existence of a situation you become responsible for its continuation.
Letter from the Publisher
Letter from the Publisher
One should not take the helm of a 165-year-old institution without a sense of history and humility, and so I arrived this week to take up my new post as publisher of the Vineyard Gazette with a healthy dose of both.
Join Vineyard’s Rotary Ambassador Ranks
Applications are now being accepted for one of International Rotary’s oldest programs, the ambassadorial scholarship awards, designed to further international understanding and foster friendly relations among people of different languages and different cultures. While abroad, scholars serve as ambassadors of goodwill to the people of the host country and give presentations about their homeland to…
Sprinkling on a Little Bit Extra, Brownies Scoop Cash for Japan
It’s easy to feel helpless in the wake of disaster but, as the six girls of Edgartown Brownie Troop 80290 learned, equally easy to take action. For the past few weeks, Brownies Ellie Dolby, Kamari Edgar-Harris, Kylie Estrella, Kya Malone, Madison Palmer and Avery Simmons have been hard at work raising money to donate to…
Food for Fines
Food for Fines
Food for library fines amnesty week is April 10 through 16 at the Vineyard Haven Public Library.
Anyone with an account full of overdue books and movies can return them free of charge by bringing a nonperishable food donation for the Island Food Pantry,
For details,…
Get in the Picture at Wednesday’s Library Snapshot
On Wednesday, April 13, libraries on Martha’s Vineyard will join libraries across the commonwealth and the nation to provide a “snapshot” of what happens in a day in the life of libraries. How many books are checked out? How many people receive help finding a job? Doing their taxes? Doing their homework? During Snapshot Day,…
Scouts Honor
Scouts Honor
Kevin Oliver of Oak Bluffs was among those who received an award for service at the Boy Scouts of America’s Cape Cod & Islands Council tribute to volunteer leaders last month at Dennis-Yarmouth Regional High School.
Mr. Oliver was given a council “Oscar,” a local award for service to…
A Wee Introduction to Vineyard Tartan
International man of tartan, Philip D. Smith, Jr., PhD., has recently designed a tartan design for Martha’s Vineyard.
The tartan was to be introduced by Dr. Smith at the National Tartan Day Conference held on Tartan Day, April 6.
Dr. Smith’s expertise in the oeuvre of plaid lies in both talking…
Join Red Cross Team
Join Red Cross Team
The Martha’s Vineyard Red Cross of the Cape Cod and Islands is conducting trainings for those who want to learn more about becoming a volunteer for Red Cross disaster services as well as becoming a member of the Vineyard’s disaster assistance team.
The trainings are scheduled for…
Edgartown Fixes the Lane, Lauds the Police
Edgartown selectmen this week directed town highway superintendant Stuart Fuller to shave down a berm on Curtis Lane that has proved problematic for drivers. The Massachusetts highway department and the department of transportation have already approved the work. The berm was installed to prevent water runoff onto Curtis Lane, but at Monday’s selectmen’s meeting Curtis…
Lawyer Plans to Repay Money, Criminal Investigation Continues
Expecting to come up with more than $400,000 by early next week, Edgartown attorney Edward W. (Peter) Vincent is negotiating to delay a hearing set for Monday in Suffolk superior court, according to his lawyer.
Court Grants New Trial: 20-Year-Old Rape Charge
A man who was convicted of rape in Dukes County 20 years ago has been granted a new trial. Chad Edward served time in state prison after a jury found him guilty of rape in 1991 following an incident in the Dark Woods section of Edgartown in the summer of 1990 involving a 15-year-old babysitter.
Terrier Ordered Off the Island, Chilmark Board Checks Wind
A Cairn terrier that killed chickens and a cat will be allowed to move out of state, Chilmark selectmen agreed this week. After killing four hens, badly maiming another and killing a cat, the 12-pound terrier owned by Heather and Geordie Gude has taken refuge in a New York city home. The Gudes said the…
Burns Planned for Friday At Arboretum and Katama
The Martha’s Vineyard Prescribed Fire Partnership plans to conduct controlled burns today, Friday, April 8, at the Polly Hill Arboretum in West Tisbury and the Department of Fisheries and Wildlife property in Edgartown, west of Katama Airpark along Herring Creek Road.
Smoke may be visible Friday morning west of State Road, between North…
Peeping Tom Arrest Follows Neighborhood Chase in Tisbury
Tisbury police are hopeful they have ended a long string of Peeping Tom incidents with the arrest of a man, spotted peering into a house in Franklin Terrace, on Monday night, chased and detained by neighbors.
Reginaldo DeSouza of Clough Lane in Vineyard Haven was arraigned in Edgartown district court on Tuesday on…
Gay Head Lighthouse Opens Weekdays
Tourism at the Gay Head Cliffs may get a boost this summer. The executive director of the Martha’s Vineyard Museum told the Aquinnah selectmen this week that the Gay Head Lighthouse will be open weekdays beginning June 21.
David Nathans said the new hours at the lighthouse will provide more sightseeing opportunities for…
Art in Film
Art in Film
Tonight at the Grange Theatre in West Tisbury, the Island Theatre Workshop is presenting a program entitled Art Immersion in Film. The event includes Valerie Sonnenthal’s Visual Diary Project with original music by Sergio Cervetti and a program of short films including a premiere of Richard Skidmore’s latest work. Following…
Photography Book Award
Photography Book Award
West Tisbury photographer Alan Brigish’s book Breathing in the Buddha: A Photographic Exploration of Buddhist Life in Indochina was recently awarded first place in the photography category of the 2010 DIY Book Festival, which honors independent and self-published works of merit. The book also received an honorable mention in the…
Driver Education to Return, Neal Maciel to Steer the Course
Pending the ability to hire an accredited teacher, high school leaders announced this week that driver education will return to the regional high school next fall.
Former head of the state police, Neal Maciel, is set to begin teaching in the fall once he receives the proper teaching credentials from the department of…
Battle in Edgartown for Library Board
Out with the old library and in with the new may take on a new meaning at the annual town election in Edgartown next Thursday. Against a backdrop of heated discussion in recent months and weeks over plans for a new town library, three seats on the library board of trustees are being contested.
…
Race to the Bottom Line in Oak Bluffs
Next Thursday Oak Bluffs voters will elect two selectmen from a crowded field of five candidates. With a still-sputtering economy and town coffers running dry, each one is claiming the mantle of financial leadership.
This week the Gazette spoke with all five candidates.
Despite the town’s recent fiscal woes both incumbents…
Wastewater Plant Stops Taking Money
Responding to a fraud investigation launched last month by the Cape and Islands district attorney, on Monday the Edgartown wastewater commission voted to change the way the town collects its wastewater bills.
Would You Like Ties on that McMansion?
There was talk of class warfare and fascism. There were dark forecasts of Martha’s Vineyard as a community polarized between very rich and very poor. There was a crowd. Last Monday’s was not your standard meeting of the Martha’s Vineyard Commission land use planning committee.
But as commission executive director Mark London noted…
Harborfront Pier Plan Paused, Homeowner Offers to Scale Back
A private pier large enough to trigger the definition of a marina will return to the Edgartown conservation commission next week after the applicants for the pier decided to scale back the size this week.
Tisbury Tightens Belt to Fit Straitened Economic Times
The annual town meeting warrant which will be addressed by Tisbury voters on Tuesday night is one cut to the economic times, featuring none of the big-cost initiatives of recent years.
This is the year Tisbury abandoned its free-spending ways. There are no new fire stations this time around, no other big new…
Oak Bluffs Keeps Budget Lean, With Extras Left on the Side
Oak Bluffs residents accustomed to the marathon week-long spectacle that has come to characterize town meetings in recent years will be shocked to see the length of this year’s warrant.
“It’s very short,” said selectman Ron DiOrio this week. The push for simplification comes as a reaction to last year’s town meeting which…
Edgartown Library Expansion: Voters Finally Have Their Say
A lean budget, new library and a series of zoning bylaw changes top a hefty 68-article warrant that awaits Edgartown voters at the annual town meeting Tuesday night.
Longtime moderator Philip J. Norton Jr. will preside over the session; the meeting begins at 7 p.m. in the Old Whaling Church.
Voters…
Wine on Table in West Tisbury As Voters Face Menu of Choices
A historic change is in the works for West Tisbury if voters approve the sale of beer and wine at town restaurants and inns at the annual town meeting on Tuesday night.
A petitioned article championed by the owners of State Road Restaurant, the Lambert’s Cove Inn and the Plane View calls for…
Dean’s List
Dean’s List
Timothy L. McHugh of Edgartown has been named to the dean’s list for the fall 2010 semester at Merrimack College.
Chilmark
JANE N. SLATER
508-645-3378
(slaterjn@comcast.net)
Chilmark looks like Dubai this week . . . great tall building cranes everywhere you look. Actually, there are three of them and they were all working at the same time some days this week. One is working for the town of Chilmark, rebuilding…
Oak Bluffs
HOLLY NADLER
508-274-2329
(hollynadler@gmail.com)
There are two categories of cottage owners in Oak Bluffs plus a middle ground. The two extremes are people who adore color and people who are virtually allergic to it. The second group is comfortable with homes of gray shingles adorned with white trim. There…
Edgartown
KATHIE CASE
508-627-5349
(kathleencase@comcast.net)
Well, Mother Nature has really shown her forces this week. We got rain, we got wind and we got sun. But it looks as if we are going to get heat next week, which will be a great welcome with the sun.
Temperatures
Temperature: Precip.
Day Max. Min. Inches.
Fº Fº
April 1 44 35 1.66
April 2 43 37 .06
April 3 52 36 Trace
April 4 56 34 .00
April 5 51 42 .01
April 6 57 35 .19
April 7 53 38 Trace
…
Aquinnah
JUNE D. MANNING
508-645-2574
(lthslnks@gis.net)
The Martha’s Vineyard Center for Living will sponsor their fourth in a series of cultural luncheons tomorrow from noon to 2 p.m. at the Grill on Main. Ruth Cronig Stiller and her daughter, Gayle Stiller, will present the influence and contributions, history and culture…
Chappy
MARGARET KNIGHT
508-627-8894
(margaret02539@yahoo.com)
The spring peepers finally showed up on Chappaquiddick. Reports of peepers up-Island came in weeks ago, but we hadn’t heard any here until earlier this week. The peepers’ evening croakings make it feel as if spring really has arrived, despite the frequent temperature plunges back…
Correction
Correction
A story in last week’s Gazette about Tisbury shellfish constable Danielle Ewart misspelled her first name. Also Ms. Ewart was misquoted early in the story; she said she wants a Chevy, not a Dodge. The Gazette regrets the errors.
Welcome Matheo
Welcome Matheo
Nataly and Ramon Gomes of Vineyard Haven announce the birth of a son, Matheo David Gomes, born on March 31, 2011, at the Martha’s Vineyard Hospital. Matheo weighed 8 pounds, 3 ounces at birth.
Vineyard Skies
The moon has appeared higher in our western sky over the last few days. Tonight, the crescent moon appears in the zodiacal constellation Taurus, a constellation we associate with winter but now only appears for a short time at the end of the day and the start of night.
Music! Right Here on Martha’s Vineyard!
The major repercussion for you, the audience member, of attending a production, anywhere, anytime, of Broadway’s great classic The Music Man, is your own zany behavior the morning after. The moment you open your eyes, you’ll begin a whispered verse, “What can I do, my dear, to make it clear?
Preschool Party and Everyone’s Invited
It’s an annual rite of spring, the Chilmark Preschool celebration fundraiser. For those who haven’t attended, this is not just another face-painting, pony riding, food and gameapalooza. It is also the place to get your baby chicks.
Every year a great crop of young birds is on display. Kids get to pet the…
Hunger Banquet
Hunger Banquet
On Thursday, April 14, the Vineyard Committee on Hunger will host an Oxfam Hunger Banquet in the cafeteria at the high school. This dinner is an opportunity to see up close, and in the very tangible way of a meal being served, what the disparity of incomes throughout the world looks…
Children’s Book Illustrator Focus of Art in the Stacks
Art in the Stacks presents an exhibit at the Vineyard Haven Public Library of acrylic paintings by Joan Walsh. The exhibit will be on display during the month of April.
Ms. Walsh was born in Ireland where she attended the National College of Art and Design in Dublin. Her work was exhibited in…
Art and Commerce Unite
Art and Commerce Unite
Every once in awhile even an artist must stop and smell the numbers. Business acumen and self-promotion are essential in getting one’s work out into the public eye. But how to go about this, especially when the day is short and the bulk of it should be spent on…
How Many Bees, How Many Fishies, the Results Are In
The scientists have been out counting and next week the results are coming in for two separate studies.
Casting Call
Casting Call
Auditions are being held on Thursday, April 21 and Friday, April 22 for ten speaking roles in Policing in America, a video project of Detrick Lawrence Productions of Edgartown. These are paid positions for filming which will take place on May 4 and 5.
Auditions are by appointment and…
Family-to-Family Meals
Family-to-Family Meals
The Vineyard Committee on Hunger is asking for donations for Island families in need this spring, in particular for Passover and Easter meals.
The cost to sponsor a family meal is $25 and includes 1 ham or turkey, 5 pounds of potatoes, 2 pounds of onions, 1 pound of…
Living Beyond War
Living Beyond War
Living Beyond War by Winslow Myers will be the subject of a book discussion group taking place on Sunday, April 10 at 5 p.m. at the Unitarian Chapel, 238 Main street in Vineyard Haven. A second discussion will be held on April 17.
The discussions are in preparation…
YMCA Free Play Day
YMCA Free Play Day
From zumba to jujitsu, pony rides to sailing, and swimming to tennis it’s all happening at the YMCA at their Healthy Kids Day free-for-all that’s literally free for all.
The day in question is Saturday, April 9. The activities get going at 11 a.m. and continue to…
Horseshoe Crabs Get Busy
Horseshoe Crabs Get Busy
Everything you wanted to know about horseshoe crabs but were afraid to ask, in particular their mating habits, will be revealed at the Chilmark Library on Wednesday, April 13 at 5:30 p.m.
Masters Swimmers Go the Distance
This has been a busy fall and winter for the Martha’s Vineyard Masters Swim Club. Four members of the team competed in the New England Short Course Yards championship meet held in Harvard’s Blodgett Pool on March 12, 18, 19 and 20. This is the largest masters meet in New England with over 850 swimmers…
Ocean Eversley Hits Beach Preparing for Penn Relays
Ocean Eversley, 53-year-old Vineyard Haven athletics ace — she is national and New England champion in the 60, 200 and 400-meter races and long jump — is training hard for the Penn Relays that will be held on April 28 and 29. Part of the Mass Velocity track club, she’s aiming to break the masters…
Solar Sanctuary
Solar Sanctuary
Hocus Crocus
Like magic, they appear. Hocus crocus!
One doesn’t need a wand to make crocuses. Spring is to thank for the coming of the crocus, though there is also a man who can take some credit for their creation. He couldn’t make longer and warmer days, but he could make those new little cup-shaped flowers.
Oyster Plants
Every bit of garden advice I give is a result of painful experience. I have learned everything the hard way.
Barn Owls
Last week I asked people who had barn owls to let me know if they have pairs around their property. I received this marvelous description from Rebecca Gilbert of the Native Earth Teaching Farm on North Road:
