Rehearsals for the 2013 season of the Martha’s Vineyard Spirituals Choir begin on Wednesday, April 10, at 6 p.m. at the Oak Bluffs Senior Center on Wamsutta avenue. Rehearsals take place weekly and last an hour. New members are welcome.

On April 13 beginning at 5 p.m. there will be a fundraiser for Karen Berube to help with her medical expenses. The benefit will be held at the P.A. Club in Oak Bluffs and will include a lasagna dinner, silent and live auction and music by Tristan Israel and friends.

Time to get your art on. The Friends of the Vineyard Haven Public Library are hosting a group art show at the library in June and they are calling out for submissions. The show will be held on June 3 to 14, with an evening reception on Tuesday, June 4. This year’s show will be curated by Francine Kelly.

Hey ladies, do you have the beat and don’t know where to put it? You’re in luck, Roberta Kirn is hosting a drum workshop and drum circle class beginning April 11 and running for five weeks. Participants will learn basic drum technique, ensemble work, African and Afro-Cuban rhythms.

Over the next two weekends ceramic artist Washington Ledesma is doing some spring cleaning by hosting a Shelves Clearance sale to make room for new work. The sale takes place on April 6 and 7 from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. and again at the same times on April 13 and 14.

On Sunday, April 7, at 7 p.m. The Martha’s Vineyard Hebrew Center will observe Holocaust Remembrance Day with a service to commemorate the memory of those who perished in Europe during the Holocaust, including two-
thirds of the European Jewish population as well as millions of Roma (Gypsies), Slavs, political and religious dissidents, the handicapped, and gays and lesbians.

It is not surprising to be ‘ova-whelmed’ this time of year.

Spring seems finally to be here, and we have even had some nice spring weather. The thoughts of birds are turning toward their nesting season, as is evidenced by the increasing volume of birdsong. Owls are no exception, as they call more frequently at this time of the year as well. Some may already be on their nests while others are selecting their nesting sites.

Big doings out at Bayes-Norton Farm. I’ve been watching all week and wondering if the garden is being expanded or a if a house is on the way. Those big machines sure make short work of land clearing. I was thinking about our ancestors doing the same task with nothing but beasts of burden and pure brawn. They couldn’t stop by for take-out on the way home either.

Ovando Eghill pleaded guilty to manslaughter and assault with a dangerous weapon for the June 2011 stabbing death of Michael Trusty.