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
May 10, 2013
Keith Wilda Plans Future of Island Grown Farm
His passion is soil, but his career has been inside greenhouses. Now, as the new manager of the former Thimble Farm property in Oak Bluffs, Keith Wilda will get to do both. “I have the best of both worlds,” he said in a brief interview following a tour for Island farmers of the property owned…
Island Grown Farm Gets Mixed Reviews
A vocal gathering of Vineyard farmers heard about plans for a campus-style educational agricultural center during a tour of the former Thimble Farm property this week. Sponsored by the Island Grown Initiative, which bought the 40-acre farm in the center of the Island last year, the tour sparked a lively discussion among some 30 growers…
Schifter House Excavation Moves Mountains of Sand
A complicated house move that has temporarily transformed part of Wasque from a secluded point at the edge of the sea to a giant excavation and earth-moving operation is well underway.
Never Just a Little Brother, Tuesday Paper Made Headlines
More than anything else, a revolution in technology made the Tuesday edition of the Vineyard Gazette possible back in the summer of 1929. Ironically enough, it was another revolution in technology that rendered it more or less obsolete 84 years later.
Budget Hike, Lighthouse Funds Top Aquinnah Annual Meeting
Aquinnah voters will gather for their annual town meeting on Tuesday, concluding the town meeting season on the Island. Voters will take up a 12 per cent operating budget hike for the coming year and funding for a variety of work associated with a project to relocate the historic Gay Head Light. Annual and special…
Keeping Track of the Record Breakers
The Bishop Feehan runners had no chance. Regional high school junior Jeremy Alley-Tarter opened his stride as soon as he left the starting line in the 800-metre run during last Wednesday’s home meet. He quickly pulled farther and farther away from the competition and crossed the finish line in 1:57:00, a full 10 seconds ahead…
Gazette to Discontinue Tuesday Print Edition This Summer
“Next Tuesday, May 14, marks the 167th anniversary of the founding of our paper and now, as readership patterns are changing, we’re delighted to see more and more people access news and information on our website, especially through their mobile phones and iPads,” publisher Jane Seagrave announced this week. “The Tuesday paper has a long…
New Forecasts Track Sea Level Rise
From the Chappaquiddick Point to the cranberry bogs in Aquinnah, new forecasts show that no part of the Island will be immune from the impacts of sea level rise.
Languishing Affordable Housing Deal Headed to Superior Court
A six-year-old public-private project that was aimed at creating affordable housing and an expanded area of conservation land in Chilmark has landed in Dukes County superior court. The project dates to 2007 and involves the town, the Martha’s Vineyard Land Bank and the Howard B. Hillman family.
Officials Worry About Car Congestion in Vineyard Haven from Stop & Shop Expansion
Traffic impacts were a chief concern as informal public discussion around expansion plans for the Vineyard Haven Stop & Shop began before the town selectmen Tuesday night. The project, which would double the size of the existing grocery store on Water street, will be formally reviewed by the Martha’s Vineyard Commission as a development of…
Land Bank Revenues: May 3
The Martha’s Vineyard Land Bank reported revenues of $99,640 for the business week ending on Friday, May 3, 2013. The land bank receives its funds from a two per cent fee charged on many Vineyard real estate transactions.
Tuesday Will Be Different
Historians and careful readers of the Vineyard Gazette will recognize this headline for two reasons: it’s the title of a book by the esteemed former Gazette editor Henry Beetle Hough and it’s also the traditional end-of-summer signoff when this newspaper ceases its twice-weekly publishing schedule for another year.
Building Harmony in the Stacks
The project to build an eleven-million-dollar new Edgartown Library at the site of the old elementary school is nearly ready to begin. After many years of false starts and struggles to find a clear direction and support from townspeople, the plan finally found solid footing last year with funding from a generous state grant, the…
Washashore Chronicles: Easing Into the Age of the Roundabout
Once upon a time on this Island that has managed to achieve peaceful coexistence without traffic lights, we had a little hoedown at the four-way stop on the Vineyard Haven-Edgartown Road. Cars would come down Barnes Road from the airport. Cars would come up Barnes Road from Featherstone. Cars would come from the high school.…
Fifty Years Later, Birmingham Marches Still Shock and Sadden
April was a cruel month for black people in Birmingham, Ala., in 1963. So was May, and the months that followed, culminating in the explosion of a bomb in a church that September that killed four girls. Fifty years ago last week, on May 2, 1963, teenagers and children, some as young as six, marched…
Way Mih
‘’Mom, can we…. way mih Mom, this isn’t… way mih I don’t want …. way mih Wow, look at this…. waay miih He won’t give me… way mih… way mih!’’ the way of misgivings the way of minerva the way of minnie mouse the way of the minutiae of tending to. the mih of the…
Thar She Blows in Vineyard Haven
The cedar and white oak planks are new, but the design is old. A 28-foot replica of a wooden whale boat that has been under construction at the Gannon and Benjamin Marine Railway in Vineyard Haven through the winter months is now nearly complete. Fragrant cedar wood chips, sawdust and assortment of debris and tools…
Schifter Lessons, Precedent
It seems like the Schifter project on Chappy is making its way to the pages of newspapers both on and off-Island. And yet in this epic battle of man versus nature, it is unclear who will end up the winner. Nature seemed to stage a strong first offensive, but by some armoring and then a…
Campaign of Indignation
Refusing to accept the verdict of the 2012 election, the Republicans have launched a campaign to nullify it, using their control of the House and cloture-proof filibusters in the Senate to block any Obama moves. Their most powerful ally is a “news” network, whose bias may be seen in these ways:
A Little Boost for Elvers
Passing by the Mill Pond, I am always struck by its beauty and the variety of wildlife that enjoy its waters all year round: the otters sliding on the ice or diving under water, the ducks and geese
Tea With Friends
The friend of the Tisbury Council on Aging wish to thank supporters who attended our springtime tea introducing Tisbury town administrator John (Jay) Grande to the senior community. Addressing questions on waterfront reconstruction, parking congestion and long-term planning, Mr. Grande outlined the direction proposed for Tisbury. The friends (508-696-4205) reconvene on Thursday, June 13, at…
Chilmark Ring Tone
It seems Chilmark needs a monstrosity law (as did Lower Manhattan for the World Trade towers and the Upper East Side for the Guggenheim Museum) in addition to limiting square footage of houses. My 1937 Winston Simplified Dictionary defines monstrosity as the state or quality of being deformed or hideous (frightful) or extremely unusual; 2,…
School Bells
From the Vineyard Gazette editions of May, 1955: The project of the regional high school is now before the Island towns again. We believe it is still true that no authority in the field of education has recommended any other solution than this for the Vineyard’s high school problems. This does not mean that a…
Yard Announces 2013 Season, Major Gift
The Yard recently received a major three-year gift with a 2013 challenge matching goal of $250,000. While the donors have requested anonymity, the gift launches the Yard’s concurrent three-year Back (The) Yard! Challenge Match. Goals for 2014 and 2015 will be set at a later date.
Chappy Town Column: May 10
Adeline Mae Chandler took her first breath at noon on Friday, May 3, to the great delight of her parents Abigail and Curtis along with grandmother Sharlee, who arose very early that morning to be by her daughter’s side for the birth of her first granddaughter. Adeline weighed in at 7 pounds, 2 ounces and…
Oak Bluffs Town Column: May 10
Oak Bluffs, the biggest little town on the third largest unconnected island on the east coast, is not the only one to have a song named after it. (New York and San Francisco come to mind.) Little information is available about Etta Godfrey, who wrote The Oak Bluffs Galop [sic] in 1872, which highlighted the…
Vineyard Haven Town Column: May 10
Oh, boy! I have butterflies in my stomach, or perhaps a couple of crows. I head off into the wild blue yonder today for another white-knuckle flight, but the reason I’m traveling is really worth it. I’ll let you know next week how it all comes out. For those of us terrified of flying, it…
Edgartown Town Column: May 10
What beautiful spring weather we’ve been having, but now we are going to get some much needed rain. The trees are bursting with their vibrant colors and we need them to stay that way. Mother Nature will take care of that.
West Tisbury Town Column: May 10
Well, the orioles (birds, that is) have returned to town. The late Emma Whiting had records to prove that they always return by the May 12. Anna Alley spotted one at our feeder yesterday morning. Bird watchers will be keeping a keen eye out all weekend.
Chilmark Town Column: May 10
Chilmark is deep into openings and new beginnings. Most of the town businesses are either opening this weekend or next. The Chilmark Store will open May 10; The Bite and the Galley, both Menemsha eateries, will open May 16, with Beetlebung Café following on May 20. The Beach Plum Inn restaurant is open from Thursday…
Aquinnah Town Column: May 10
Spring — aha! The temperatures have been in the mid 60s this week. The first hummingbird arrived at the feeder on Sunday. The lilacs are beginning to bud and, finally, many lawns are once again green. The Aquinnah Shop is anticipating opening day on Mother’s Day.
Planetary Alignment
A planetary lineup takes place right after sunset later this month. Three readily visible planets, Venus, Jupiter and Mercury will hug the western horizon early in the evening each night over the Memorial Day weekend. But the elements of the lineup can be seen now, and in the nights ahead Vineyarders can watch two planets…
Salty Grant Shaken
When Martha’s Vineyard Sea Salt hits Island stores this summer they’ll do so with the help of the Martha’s Vineyard Women’s Network, which awarded the new business a $2,500 grant this week. The small business grant is given to a business person looking to expand or start a new business on the Vineyard. Martha’s Vineyard…
Spring Asparagus Is Definite Home Run
My first cousin Nathaniel and I used to spend every waking hour together in the summertime. Our mornings were at the Chilmark Community Center running after perfect spirals from the Rev. John Taylor on the football field. Players were encouraged to be barefoot and the game was not over until the noon whistle was no…
A Room of Their Own, Vineyard Retreats Helps Writers Develop
They come from all over the country, staying for one or two weeks or up to a full month. They explore Edgartown from their home base at the former Point Way Inn. Some of them work in their rooms, others find a nesting spot in one of the many elegant downstairs parlors. For dinner they…
Island Club Gives Back
Our Island Club is now in its eighth year and during this time it has distributed over $300,000 to local charities. This year alone it gave away $50,000 to over 180 different organizations including the food pantry, hospice, the museum, the shellfish group, schools, churches, arts programs; nearly every corner of the Island benefited.
Vineyard Style With the Long Point 5
The Hebrew Center in Vineyard Haven is hosting The Long Point 5 on Sunday, May 19, at 4 p.m. The quintet of Vineyarders will perform music ranging from jazz of Duke Ellington and Jelly Roll Morton, rags of Scott Joplin and a little Argentinian tango. The group consists of John Schilling on trumpet, Jim Athearn…
Tennis for Beginners
Martha’s Vineyard Community Tennis will sponsor an adult beginning tennis clinic at 9 a.m. on Saturday, May 18, on the clay courts of Farm Neck in Oak Bluffs. The clinic is designed for people 18 years or older who have never played or have very little tennis experience. The cost is $15 and lunch is…
Spring String Concert
The Island’s littlest musicians take center stage as the All-Island Spring String Concert begins at 6:30 p.m. on Monday, May 20, at the Performing Arts Center at the regional high school. The concert is free and offers a chance for all the Island elementary schools to showcase their talent at the world premiere of Rock…
Diving Into the Pink and Green Season
Mother’s Day weekend and the beginning of spring are coming together for one extravaganza taking place all over Edgartown. The Pink & Green weekend runs from May 10 to 12 and is celebrated with shopping, noshing and even dancing at numerous locations. Sponsored by the Edgartown Board of Trade, the colorful weekend gets the season…
Please Adopt Us
Ah spring! In addition to green grass and blossoming trees it also brings us pets caught in the Vineyard Shuffle of limited rentals. Forced to move to make room for summer visitors, tenants are often faced with having to relinquish their pets due to the no-pet policies of landlords. If in need, the Animal Shelter…
Flowers at Featherstone
Tea, tulle and flowers look beautiful together at Featherstone this weekend. On Saturday, May 11, as the Garden Tea Party and Fashion Show takes place from 2 to 4 p.m. On Sunday, May 12, from 4 to 6 p.m. there will be an opening reception for The Art of Flowers Show.
Scrimshaw at Museum
Youngsters can travel back to the days when whalers and sailors engraved images on whale bone as part of the Edgartown Board of Trade’s Pink and Green Weekend. Since it is a Pink and Green Weekend, youngsters will carve their own scrimshaw art out of pink and green soap. The scrimshaw event is offered at…
Cancer Group Benefit
The annual Evening Under the Stars benefitting the Martha’s Vineyard cancer support group is on Tuesday, May 14, at Lattanzi’s Restaurant, 19 Church street in Edgartown, beginning at 6 p.m. The charitable group, now in its 26th year, provides emotional and financial support to Island cancer patients and their families. More than 400 Vineyard families…
Falmouth Academy Open House
Falmouth Academy will host an admissions open house from 1 to 3 p.m. on Saturday, May 11 for families interested in finding out more about the school. Falmouth Academy students, teachers and parents will discuss their experiences at the school. A van will pick up Vineyard families at 12:45 p.m. in Woods Hole and return…
A Fleeting Glimpse
We had left Arizona and were in a campsite at a campground near the Rio Grande River in Big Bend National Park, Tex. In preparation for our trek the following day, we played the recording of the colima warbler over and over again while preparing dinner. We knew we would only find this rare warbler…
Early Music Ensemble
The Arts at the Martha’s Vineyard Hebrew Center will present the San Francisco-based early music ensemble Passamezzo Moderno in a concert of 17th Century instrumental music from Rome using original instruments. The concert will be held in the Harriet B. Freedberg Learning Center at the Martha’s Vineyard Hebrew Center, 130 Center street in Vineyard Haven,…
Brave Women and Men
In honor of Memorial Day, Jonathan Auerbach will bring his second annual Brave Women, Brave Men benefit concert to the Vineyard beginning at 4 p.m. on Sunday, May 26, at the Martha’s Vineyard Film Center in the Tisbury Market Place, 79 Beach Road in Vineyard Haven. Mr. Auerbach will peform original music along with vocalist…
Chef Shuffle Keeps the Skills Sharp
With just two weeks to go until Memorial Day weekend, restaurants are making their final preparations for the season: sprucing up interiors, finalizing menus and making new hires. And while most of those hires are waitstaff and kitchen crew, some establishments have new leadership in the chefs themselves. Several Island chefs have moved to new…
Magnolia Magic
Magnolia trees would do well to befriend beetles but leave bees behind.
Back Swinging
Apparently I have an aversion to following my own advice. I decided to peruse some of my mid-May columns from years past. I was hoping to plagiarize myself. Last year I lamented how things have changed in the world. Honestly, how old am I? I commented on geraniums, impatiens and tomato plants for sale and…
American University Grad
Sam L. Larsen, 22, of Edgartown, graduated summa cum laude from American University School of Public Affairs in Washington, D.C. Sam is a member of Phi Beta Kappa, and the son of Dan L. and Marie Larsen, who with other family members will attend his May 11 graduation. His interests are government and law. “He…
Quick Pace, Possible Sequel for Vineyard Reality Show
Filming in the town of Tisbury for the ABC Family reality TV show The Vineyard will be largely limited to the Black Dog Tavern, and will require producers to work at a breakneck pace in order to meet a midsummer debut, show producers told selectmen on Tuesday. Producers for the show met with the board…
Telephone Scam Targets Island Seniors
Tisbury police are warning people to be on the alert for a telephone scam under way on the Island that appears to be targeting seniors. Officer Jeffrey Day told the Gazette late Wednesday that he had received two reports from seniors who had received telephone calls from someone appearing to represent a medical alarm system.…
Furlone — Cullen
Fran and Annemarie Cullen of New Hampshire and formerly of Vineyard Haven announce the engagement of their son Andrew Cullen to Jacqueline Furlone of Dover, N.H. Jacqueline’s parents are Robert and Christina Furlone of Spofford, N.H.
Awarded Degrees
James Todd of Oak Bluffs was awarded bachelor’s degrees in both English and secondary education from Villanova University with the honor of magna cum laude.
Welcome, Makenna
Jasmine Godek and Derek Wood of Vineyard Haven announce the birth of a daughter, Makenna Wood, born on April 30 at the Martha’s Vineyard Hospital. Makenna weighed 5 pounds, 12 ounces at birth.
Welcome, Bianca
Katie and Ben Stafford of Oak Bluffs announce the birth of a daughter, Bianca Mary Stafford, born on May 4 at the Martha’s Vineyard Hospital. Bianca weighed 8 pounds, 7 ounces at birth.
Hello, Yago
Aline Honorato and Paulo De Moraes of Oak Bluffs announce the birth of a son, Yago Da Silva De Moraes, born on May 5 at the Martha’s Vineyard Hospital. Yago weighed 7 pounds, 4 ounces at birth.
Kevin Arrives
Elizangela Castro and Euclides Souza Neto of Edgartown announce the birth of a son, Kevin Souza Castro, born on May 2 at the Martha’s Vineyard Hospital. Kevin weighed 5 pounds, 12.8 ounces at birth.
Announcing Ayla
Pamela Debettencourt and Jason Bennett of Edgartown announce the birth of a daughter, Ayla Conroy Bennett, born on May 5 at the Martha’s Vineyard Hospital. Ayla weighed 8 pounds, 8.1 ounces at birth.
Dean’s List
Evan Hall of Aquinnah was named to the fall 2012 dean’s list at Berklee College of Music.
Library Trustees Sever Ties with Foundation
In a widening rift between Edgartown leaders and the nonprofit Edgartown Library Foundation, the town library trustees voted Tuesday to ask the foundation to cease and desist fundraising for the library, and to remove the Edgartown library image and information from its website. “They are no longer, in my opinion, supporting the library or doing…
Schools Go Green for Harvest of the Month
Spring is here at last, and Island Grown Schools celebrates the appearance of the first spring greens in school gardens across the Island. We dedicated April to greens in our Harvest of the Month program, with taste tests at every school and school meals featuring local and regionally grown greens at least twice throughout the…
Family Center Finds a New Home
The Martha’s Vineyard Family Center, which has offered free classes, play groups and educational support to Island families with young children for 16 years, will relocate from the regional high school to the Nathan Mayhew Seminar campus in Vineyard Haven in the fall. “We’re very excited to have a new home,” said Nell Coogan, development…
