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
May 11, 2012
Island Housing Trust Open House
The Island Housing Trust is holding an open house today to celebrate the completion of four townhouses at Wentworth Way (129 Lake Street) in Vineyard Haven. The open house will take place from 5 to 6:30 p.m. The public is invited to welcome the homeowners of these affordable units and to tour the building project.
Martha’s Vineyard Named to Best Island List
Martha’s Vineyard is better than Nantucket! At least, that’s the opinion of the folks at familyvacationcritic.com. The Web site has compiled a list of the 10 best islands in the United States, and ranks Martha’s Vineyard number 8, one spot ahead of Nantucket. Amelia Island, located off the coast of northeastern Florida, nabbed the top…
News Update: Thursday, May 17 – Boys’ Tennis, Girls’ Lacrosse Win Athletic Conference
Two Vineyard teams clinched an Eastern Athletic Conference title this week, with the boys’ tennis team picking up their third consecutive championship and girls’ lacrosse taking home their second.
News Update: Wednesday, May 16 – Vineyard May Welcome New Propane Provider
Citing a near monopoly of the Island’s propane supply, a new player hopes to enter the Vineyard energy market this year. John Rymes, owner of Rymes Propane & Oil, a family-owned business based in Pembroke, N.H., appeared before the Tisbury selectmen on Tuesday to request a license to store 16,500 gallons of propane on property…
News Update: Tuesday, May 15 – Chilmark Selectmen Will Appeal Rejected Insurance Claim from Menemsha Fire
The Chilmark selectmen endorsed a formal appeal to the U.S. Coast Guard’s rejected insurance claims for the Menemsha boathouse fire Tuesday night. The selectmen unanimously voted to approve an appeal letter crafted by town counsel Ron Rappaport that questions the outcome of the investigation into the cause of the July 2010 fire and challenges the…
Cancer Support Fundraiser
The Martha’s Vineyard Cancer Support Group, Inc. is holding its annual fundraiser, An Evening Under the Stars, on Thursday, May 17. The event takes place at Lattanzi’s Restaurant in Edgartown from 6 to 9 p.m. There will be hot and cold hors d’oeuvres, beverages, desserts, and music by Mike Benjamin. The cost is $100 per…
Phone Lines Down at West Tisbury Town Hall
The West Tisbury Town Hall reports that its phone lines are down, and will likely remain out of service through part of the day.
News Update: Sunday, May 13 – Under a Starry Night, Prom Goers Make Lifetime Memories
It was all about sparkles at the high school junior prom Saturday: the sequins on prom gowns, the silver stars hanging in the Edgartown Yacht Club, the sun hitting the water in Edgartown Harbor, the excitement of the juniors as they gathered for their big night.
Students walked into Yacht Club wearing their…
Happy Birthday to Us!
Monday, May 14 marks the Gazette’s 166th anniversary. The first edition of the paper was printed in 1846. The Gazette has never missed an issue in more than a century and a half..
News Update: Saturday, May 12 – Islanders and Their State Senator Celebrate Vote Against Citizens United
With town meeting season over, some Islanders gathered with state Sen. Dan Wolf Saturday morning to celebrate all six towns passing resolutions against the Supreme Court Citizens United case.
News Update: Friday, May 11 – West Tisbury One-Car Accident Leads to Power Outage
Part of the Edgartown-West Tisbury road was blocked from traffic Friday afternoon after a car collided with a utility pole, police said.
Around 1 p.m. Friday, a vehicle driven by Carolyn Spengler, 72, of West Tisbury, collided with a utility pole on Edgartown road just past Deep Bottom road, West Tisbury police Corporal…
Mothers’ Day Festivities
Mothers are the light that guides us all, so it’s fitting that on this day entrance to the Island’s brightest lights should be offered gratis. The Edgartown Lighthouse will offer free admission for all mothers from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.; the Gay Head Lighthouse from 1 to 3 p.m.
Pink & Green Weekend
The Edgartown Board of Trade is celebrating a new event, the Pink & Green weekend, from May 11 to May 13 with promotions and discounts on pink and green items. The Edgartown Council on Aging will serve a pink and green meal — salmon primavera with snow peas — at the Anchors, and kids are…
Study Will Illuminate Lighthouse’s Future
As erosion inches the Gay Head Lighthouse closer to the edge, the Martha’s Vineyard Museum is moving ahead with a study to assess the urgency of relocating the 156-year-old structure.
The study will take place over the course of three years and provide a “more realistic” prediction of what the long-term needs are…
Discount Tickets
Discount Tickets
Hospice of Martha’s Vineyard is selling season tickets for Martha’s Vineyard Sharks games at a discounted price. Season tickets, normally $100, are $80 if purchased through the hospice. Children’s tickets (under 13 years of age) are also available for $40. Half the proceeds will be donated directly to the hospice.
…
Students Celebrate Starry Night Prom This Weekend
This is not your parent’s prom.
There are the limo buses that will hit Island streets Saturday night, the online shopping to find the perfect dress (a bonus for Island-bound Vineyard teens), and the inevitable Facebook pictures of the big night.
No matter the differences, though, Vineyard high schoolers will follow…
High School Sets Sights on Resource Officer
The high school committee this week took a first step toward reestablishing a school resource officer, with an eye toward combining guidance with law enforcement and establishing a positive police role model for students.
At its meeting Monday the district committee voted unanimously to explore creating the position, which would be full time.
LEED House
LEED House
Squash Meadow Construction Inc. has completed Vineyard Haven’s first LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) certified home. The home, owned by John and Anne Grandin and designed by Sullivan-O’Connor Architects, is the first to be certified by the US Green Building Council (USGBC) in Vineyard Haven. LEED is a rating…
Bass, Herring Are Food For Commission Thought at Marine Fisheries Meeting
In an uncommon gesture toward Island fishermen, the state Marine Fisheries Commission brought its monthly business meeting to the Katharine Cornell Theatre in Vineyard Haven yesterday afternoon. Beneath the large Stanley Murphy mural paintings of fishing life on the Vineyard, the commission tackled topics that affect the lives of local and state commercial fishermen, such…
Man Accused of Rape Facing Additional Indictments
A Vineyard Haven man already facing rape charges in Dukes County superior court was indicted by a grand jury Wednesday for allegedly soliciting the murder of a prosecutor.
David L. Thrift was indicted by the grand jury on two counts of solicitation to commit a felony as well as charges of aggravated rape…
Wampanoags Began Planning for Bingo Hall in Aquinnah Last Fall, Documents Show
Reports that the Wampanoag Tribe of Gay Head (Aquinnah) wants to open a bingo hall in Aquinnah came as a surprise to members of the Island community this week. But documents filed with the federal gaming commission show plans to conduct gaming on the Vineyard have been in the works since at least November.
Waste Shipped Away to New Bedford
Tisbury and Oak Bluffs have signed an agreement to send their solid waste to a New Bedford facility.
The Oak Bluffs selectmen Tuesday gave the go-ahead for a 10-year agreement with the Greater New Bedford Regional Refuse Management District for the two towns to dispose of solid waste. Tisbury selectmen approved the proposal…
Project to Buy Thimble Farm Fails, Property to Go on Market
Thimble Farm is now expected to go on the market after a community coalition that had formed last year to buy the farm failed to raise enough money.
The group was called the Martha’s Vineyard Farm Project and the goal was to buy the 37-acre farm that is currently leased by Whippoorwill Farm…
Aquinnah Ends Town Meeting Season With Override Approval
Voter turnout may have been low at the Aquinnah town election and annual meeting this week, but those that did turn out came prepared to approve large expenditures and voice their disapproval of the Oak Bluffs roundabout.
A total of 54 voters, or 14 per cent of registered voters, went to the polls…
New Business on the Square: Turkish Delight, Piknik Gallery
There’s a spring awakening — of commerce, new beginnings and friendship — on Winter street in Edgartown.
In one storefront, Michael Hunter has started a pop-up outpost of his cool, eclectic Oak Bluffs shop, Piknik. Next door, Recep Dinli has traveled considerably farther to open his store, Kissmet, which sells brightly-colored, handmade wares…
Roundabout by the Numbers
Opinion in five of the six Vineyard towns is running strongly against the proposed roundabout at the blinker intersection in Oak Bluffs, the results of a recent nonbinding referendum show. Aquinnah this week was the last of five towns to vote on the nonbinding question that appeared on every annual town election town ballot except…
Intervenor Denied In Cape Wind Case
The state Supreme Judicial Court Wednesday denied an Edgartown resident’s attempt to intervene in commonwealth approval of a power contract between Cape Wind Associates and the utility National Grid. Richard Melone and others petitioned to intervene in the power agreement, though an unsigned decision by the court determined that the Department of Public Utilities had…
Bike Week
It’s spring and time to take to the road. But instead of hitting the fossil fuels, use your legs as gas. In other words, jump into Bike Week, happening all over Massachusetts next week.
Here on the Vineyard, Phil Hughes from Wheel Happy Too is joining the YMCA’s after-school prgram on Monday, May…
Oak Bluffs Welcomes New Officer
Dustin Shaw of Oak Bluffs was sworn in as the newest full-time police officer in Oak Bluffs in a May 2 ceremony. Dustin previously worked for the Tisbury police.
Dustin was born and raised in Oak Bluffs. He graduated from Martha’s Vineyard Regional High School in 2003. He graduated from Norwich University in…
Police Department Passes Accreditation
The Oak Bluffs police department has received state certification from the Massachusetts Police Accreditation Commission.
To achieve accreditation, which is voluntary, police departments must meet and maintain 159 standards. The process includes a self-assessment followed by an external peer review. According to a press release from the commission, the certification enhances the reputation…
Flower Farmer Awarded Lease, Will Plant Roots on Tea Lane
Tea Lane Farm — the historic but languishing property off Middle Road in Chlimark — has a new tenant farmer.
Flower farmer Krishana Collins was awarded the Chilmark property last Friday in a 5 to 3 vote from the town’s board of selectmen and Martha’s Vineyard Land Bank Commission advisory board. The joint…
Announcing Joao
Announcing Joao
Janete Correa and Jose Dias of Oak Bluffs announce the birth of a son, João Lucas Dias, born on May 4, 2012 at the Martha’s Vineyard Hospital. Joao weighed 7 pounds, 2 ounces at birth. He joins big sister Leiliane.
Food Revolution Gets Underway, One Local Pea Shoot at a Time
For the last five years a quiet revolution has been under way in Vineyard schools. It’s taking place in the lunchrooms, where leafy green salads, roasted pumpkin seeds and tacos stuffed with brightly colored peppers from local farms are replacing the more traditional canned corn, tater tots and government surplus fare.
It’s taking…
Open Casting Call
Open Casting Call
The Emergency Film Group is holding an open casting call for a new video series called Professional Security Officer. Roles include a security officer, a security supervisor, a vision-impaired person, an elderly person, a thief, clerks, and a warehouse worker. And for those worried about flubbing your lines, no worries,…
Light Moments
Alida O’Loughlin is the featured artist this month for the Vineyard Haven Library’s Art of the Stacks program.
Ms. O’Loughlin is a photographer who went public with her calling late in life; she showed her work for the first time when she was over 70 years old. Since then she has made up…
Vineyarders Not Dampened by Rain
Rain postponed a few home games this week, but it did not prevent a number of Vineyard successes: the boys’ tennis and sailing teams qualified for the postseason, while track athletes saw individual victories over the weekend.
Of particular note in home games this week is the girls’ lacrosse nightcap tonight against Wayland.…
Changing Planets
Change is ahead for the three visible evening planets. Venus, which has dominated our evening sky for months, is appearing lower in the sky. After sunset, Venus still appears high in the west, but it is already substantially lower than it was just two weeks ago. Venus will disappear from our sights in two weeks.
New Book Rekindles Lore of 1884 Shipwreck off Aquinnah
It is 128 years since the worst maritime disaster in these waters, yet the story of the sinking of the City of Columbus, one half mile off Aquinnah, gains new life by the release of a book by Thomas Dresser.
Shipwrecks and the events that surround them never seem far from the public…
Island Florist Builds Her Legacy As a World-Class Ironwoman
At 4 p.m. on the day before last month’s Boston Marathon, Kim O’Callaghan, 47, of Vineyard Haven, could have been expected to have her mind on preparing for the next day’s race—which would be her 14th go up Heartbreak Hill. (She ran this year’s race in 4 hours, 51 minutes and 40 seconds.)
West Tisbury’s First Beer, Wine License
West Tisbury selectmen took a historic step on Wednesday, unanimously voting to approve the town’s first beer and wine license. State Road restaurant, which spearheaded the campaign to bring wine and beer sales to the town, applied for and was granted a year-round license.
Owner Mary Kenworth said the restaurant would close only…
Regional High School Paper Wins Top Award
The Martha’s Vineyard Regional High School student newspaper won top honors last weekend in the New England Scholastic Press Association’s scholastic journalism competition.
For the third time in six years, The High School View finished in first place in the All-New England category (Division III) in the press association’s annual competition.
Temperatures
Temperature: Precip.
Day Max. Min. Inches.
Fº Fº
May4 57 49 Trace
May 5 59 49 .01
May 6 59 47 Trace
May 7 62 38 Trace
May 8 68 48 .00
May 9 58 53 .44
…
Trout Tourney Lures Young Anglers
The threat of rain, drizzle and leaden skies did not diminish the Martha’s Vineyard Rod and Gun Club’s annual trout tournament held at Duarte’s Pond in West Tisbury last Saturday. In the early hours of morning, fishing was great and the youngsters caught plenty and saw only a few raindrops.
Family Planning Art Show
Family Planning Art Show
Save the date for the family planning art show held on Memorial Day weekend.
The event takes place at the Agricultural Hall in West Tisbury and includes paintings, sculpture, photography, jewelry, maybe even a cow turned painter; it is the Ag Hall, after all.
The…
Please Adopt Us
Please Adopt Us
Waiting on the Wing With a Prayer
The wind over Lucy Vincent Beach has to be just right, from the southeast and maybe 10 to 15 miles an hour, so that it strikes the cliff there and forms a column of rising air. When that happens, if you are a paraglider pilot, it can be magic.
Thimble Farm: Time for Action Is Now
Editor’s Note: The following went out to Whippoorwill Farm members in a newsletter this week.
By ANDREW WOODRUFF
Several weeks ago, I began to plow the fields at Thimble Farm for what most likely will be the last time. As the dust rose up from the turning of the soil, I…
Poem: Landscaper in Growing Season
This month’s flower girl stops traffic
in the garden center parking lot
in tight Carhartts and Felco holster,
wiping a smear of soil from her cheek
with clay-encrusted fingers. Where’s she been
all winter? On some exotic playa
down under, collecting seaglass? Or…
A Mother’s Day Plea to Safeguard the Elderly
“M is for the million things she gave me . . . ”
Town Meeting Season: It’s a Wrap
The last votes have been tallied and the results are clear: Vineyard voters do not want a roundabout in the middle of the Island.
By the Light of the Moon
As the moon ascends into the night sky it appears to shrink. Astronomers and scientists tell us this is not so and that its size remains exactly the same as when it first appears on the horizon. Rather, they say, it is the moon’s contrast to surface landmarks, such as trees and buildings, that makes…
Cupboard’s Need Runneth Over: Food Pantry Recounts Year
It was a curious year at the Island Food Pantry. One day we had 12 visits; another day we had 89 visits. We had eight per cent fewer families, yet with 2,740 visits for the year — the same number of visits as last year. The pantry posted a record income of $98, 075 and…
May Daze
From Gazette editions of May 1987:
On Sunday, when the sun came out, I took to the West Tisbury woods to see what, during last week’s dank, dark days when I stayed indoors might have arrived unheralded. In a moment in the spring so much peeks forth from under the brown leaves of…
Letters to the Editor
NO SOLUTION
Editors, Vineyard Gazette:
We the families of Winthrop avenue demand the removal of the one-way section of Dukes County avenue. This incomplete resolution, to a problem originating from a failure of the town to enforce zoning and parking regulations, has created an unacceptable and unsafe situation for us.
Aquinnah
JUNE D. MANNING
508-645-2574
(lthslnks2004@yahoo.com)
The April showers obviously held off until the month of May. Everything is awakening with the abundance of blossoms. Lilacs are three weeks ahead of schedule, the shad and beach plums are now in bloom. The Aquinnah Shop has officially opened for breakfast and…
Oak Bluffs
HOLLY NADLER
508-274-2329
(hollynadler@gmail.com)
How to be gentle about this…
We are all about to undergo a paradigm shift that will seem impossible at first, but once we accept it, will condition us to be nicer and, at the same time, to save the planet.
Vineyard Haven
NANCY GARDELLA
508-693-3308
(vhavenvgazette@yahoo.com)
More of 12-year-old Cheyenne Cormier’s first visit to the Little Apple, White Plains, N.Y.:
Hello Evangelia
Hello Evangelia
Alexandra Bullen and Eliot Coutts of West Tisbury announce the birth of a daughter, Evangelia Catherine Coutts, born on May 3, 2012 at the Martha’s Vineyard Hospital. Evangelia weighed 6 pounds, 10 ounces at birth.
Welcome Emma
Welcome Emma
Hallie and Bob Hughes of Vineyard Haven announce the birth of a daughter, Emma Leighton Hughes, born on May 3, 2012 at the Martha’s Vineyard Hospital. Emma weighed 11 pounds at birth.
Bellydance Revue
Bellydance Revue
Today, May 11, is all about the bare belly as the Vineyard Bellydance and Revue hits our shores at the Katharine Cornell Theatre in Vineyard Haven. The show begins at 7:30 p.m.
On hand will be local shimmyers as well as featured guest dancers from around New England bringing…
Spring Plant Sale
Spring Plant Sale
Heirloom tomatoes (over 35 varieties), peppers, eggplant, herbs, flowers galore, it’s all ready to be transplanted to your garden thanks to the hard early work done by The Community Solar Greenhouse (COMSOG). This weekend, on Saturday and Sunday from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. the annual spring plant and seedling…
Edgartown
Kathie Case
508-627-5349
(kathleencase@comcast.net)
Things have definitely popped in town. The trees are all donning their new leaves, the grass is getting greener and the flowers are starting to show their greens. I know some people are tired of the rain already but we sure needed it and when…
Chappy
PETER WELLS
(peter@chappyferry.net)
Chappy fire captain Joseph Cressy died a year ago as of last Friday. I prefer to think of him as being on a new assignment. Wherever it is that he’s been reassigned, you can be sure that during this year he has reorganized and rearranged the place to…
Alpaca Award
Alpaca Award
She started in the corporate world and gave it all up for alpaca. Now Barbara Ronchetti will be honored for Building a Better Mousetrap.
The award, presented by small business counseling group Cape Cod SCORE, is given to 15 small business that have survived five years of operation and…
Recent Island Real Estate Transactions
Tisbury
Noel Gearhart purchased 108 Main street in Tisbury from Mary Jane Etherington for $453,000 on April 30.
Sally J. Rizzo purchased 236 West Spring street in Tisbury from South Mountain Co. Inc for $623,425 on April 30.
Donald Moulden and Jeanine Moulden purchased 281 Greenwood avenue in Tisbury…
BodySong Wellness
Too much sugar in your life? Well, to help introduce her new practice, BodySong Wellness, Lily K. Morris is offering a free workshop this Thursday, May 17, that focuses on sugar issues.
Ms. Morris is a certified health coach by the American Association of Drugless Practitioners, and has recently added holistic health counseling…
Poison Pill
This little plant is the apple of my eye.
Found in wet meadows and woods, May apple beckons the botanist with its unique appearance, ancient lore, and potential for danger.
Birds for Funds
‘Tis spring migration and time for the annual Bird-a-thon. What is a Bird-a-thon? It is a fundraiser for Felix Neck Wildlife Sanctuary that is fun and educational. This year is special as the monies will go to raising funds for Felix Neck’s Coastal Waterbird Program. The chain of events goes thusly: contact friends and businesses…
Readers Weigh In
I live in the past. I have a memory of a freeze toward the end of May, probably decades ago. Therefore I always hesitate to put any annuals out much before Memorial Day. I see geraniums, impatiens, and even tomatoes for sale at the various nurseries and always think, “They’ll be sorry.” It turns out…
CPR Ensemble Stills Beating Hearts
On Sunday, May 13, beginning at 4 p.m., the Martha’s Vineyard Hebrew Center is hosting the Composer-Performer-Repertory Ensemble, also known as CPR. It’s an unwieldy name, but the acronym, suggesting a life-saving antidote, is apt. This group can play.
The ensemble is comprised of Matthew Woodard on violin and viola, Nicholas Davies on…
Night of the Heron
Night of the Heron
Last year, the Night Heron Gallery opened at 58 Main street in Vineyard Haven as a cooperative gallery. This Saturday, the gallery again opens its doors with a reception featuring two of its newest members, Sylvie Bags and L.A. Brown Photography.
In addition to newcomers, this is…
Feather-Spotting for Funds
Feather-Spotting for Funds
Who is the best birder? Let’s ask that question again, so it sings. Who is the best birder?
Most days, who really knows. After all, birders often lurk in the shadow of sunrise, doing their spotting and counting among misty riverbanks and gray shorelines. The only sounds are…
Evening Under the Stars
Evening Under the Stars
The Martha’s Vineyard Cancer Support Group, Inc. is holding its annual fundraiser, An Evening Under the Stars, on Thursday, May 17. The event takes place at Lattanzi’s Restaurant in Edgartown from 6 to 9 p.m. There will be hot and cold hors d’oeuvres, beverages, desserts, and music by Mike…
Say Grace
Say Grace
Traditionally, a 25th anniversary is termed the silver anniversary. This year on the Vineyard, silver gives way to the lobster roll. After all, its the 25th season for Grace Church lobster rolls. In all those years, they’ve never had trouble with returns. Tell that to Macy’s.
Last Friday the…
Garden Tea Party
Garden Tea Party
Featherstone Center for the Arts is going big this weekend with two events.
On Saturday, May 12, from 2 to 4 p.m. they are hosting the third annual Garden Tea Party and Fashion Show. The event takes place outdoors under the tent and seating will be done at…
Minnesingers Celebrate Miles Traveled, Milestone Anniversary
In the spring of 1967, Tom Mills, the high school choral and orchestral director at the time, hand-picked a select group of student singers who began meeting to sing madrigals and sacred music. When thinking of possible names for the group someone floated the idea, Tom Grape and His Bunch. Thankfully, Barbara Lopes, then a…
