KATHIE CASE

508-627-5349

(kathleencase@comcast.com)

April showers bring May flowers. That is the line for the month. I have a yard full of crocuses and they give us a lot of pleasure. I saw Pat Hathaway on the way to the corner for school guard duty and she stopped to take a look at the flowers which I’m sure gave her a lift.

JOHN S. ALLEY

508-693-9087

alleys@vineyard.net

JUNE MANNING

508-645-2574

(lthslnks@gis.net)

April Fools’ day came and went. About two years ago, though, the sign at West Basin disappeared. If you crossed the town line early in the wee hours on Wednesday, you would have noticed it was creatively placed over the entering Aquinnah sign, pointing one in the direction of West Basin. So we have faith that perhaps one day the entering Gay Head sign will also resurface.

Martha’s Vineyard Regional High School principal Stephen Nixon has announced the honor roll for the second quarter of the 2008-2009 academic year.

Earning highest honors in grade 12 are: Kimberly Carlomagno, Katharine Clarke, Emma Frizzell, Loren Gibson, Eliza Gowell, Margaretta Hehre, Haley Koorse, Ryan Marinelli, Bethany Pennington, Mark Reppert and Anastasia Sargent.

Earning highest honors in grade 11 are: Katherine Cecilio, Gail Herman, Shaelah Huntington, Tessa Permar, Meghan Pettit, Hayley Pierce and Julie Pringle.

PeeWees Skate in Finals

This past weekend the PeeWee A youth hockey team competed at the state finals in Springfield. The team won their division on Saturday, placing them in the final four for the state title. They lost to Melrose on Sunday, but their Vineyard fans cheered them nonetheless for their remarkable feat.

Bullying behaviors among children of all ages has reached epidemic proportions. More than 160,000 children in this country miss school each day because they are afraid of attacks or intimidation by a peer. This destructive pattern can begin as early as preschool and it is essential that parents, educators and communities work together to remedy this situation that can have lifelong effects.

The weather may still be cold and grey, but spring was in full swing on the Vineyard’s athletic fields this week as the high school spring sports teams held practices and played in their first games of the season.

The boys’ tennis team split a pair of matches, while the softball team dropped their opener after a promising preseason. The boys’ lacrosse fell behind early in their opener but rallied late to make the game close, while the girls’ lacrosse team was dominant in its opener, winning easily by a 12-goal margin.

Every spring a benefits fair is sponsored by Dukes County and the Cape Cod Municipal Health Group, the provider of health insurance for municipal employees and their families. This year the event will include wellness programs.

The fair will be held Friday, May 15 from 3:30 to 7:30 p.m. at the Oak Bluffs School.

Providers of traditional, complementary or alternative medical care, yoga instructors, massage therapists, nutrition counselors and others are asked to please call Tammy at 508-696-3845 to reserve a spot. Space is limited.

The Martha’s Vineyard Regional High School Minnesingers are in rehearsal mode for a very busy spring performance season. On April 4, they will participate in the Massachusetts Instrumental and Choral Conductors’ Association festival at Algonquin Regional High School. Competing against set performance standards, they will be judged in several categories including tone quality, balance and blend, expression, rhythmic and intonation precision, and style. This is their first trip to a MICCA festival in 10 years.

Business Breakfast

The Martha’s Vineyard Women’s Network will host a breakfast meeting on Tuesday, April 7 in the Baylies Room at the Old Whaling Church in Edgartown. Nancy Gardella, executive director of the Martha’s Vineyard Chamber of Commerce, sets the stage with a historical look at the Vineyard summer population and an overview of what to expect for the upcoming summer based on chamber research. Advance registration deadline was April 2; the cost for walk-ins is $30.