Island Bids Farewell to Graduating Class of 2002

Commencement Exercises Pay Tribute to Largest Graduate Class in
History

By ALEXIS TONTI

For four years they studied, turned in projects and papers, took too
many tests to count. For two weeks they waited, finals over, state
tournaments played out, summer jobs begun. For several days they
practiced, the marching, the seating, the singing.

Suspicions that tularemia has made a comeback on the Vineyard for
the third summer in a row have prompted a series of new health
advisories aimed at the group of people at highest risk for the disease
- landscapers.

State Attorney General Urges New Bedford Vote in Political War Over
SSA

By JULIA WELLS
Gazette Senior Writer

The Massachusetts Attorney General touched off a fresh storm of
politics on Beacon Hill this week when he sided with the city of New
Bedford in the war among state legislators over a bill to restructure
the Steamship Authority.

Public Transit System Poised for Season

By MARCUS TONTI

The bus speaks.

"Card not valid," says a computerized voice to a
boarding passenger who doesn't insert his bus pass into the
farebox properly. But the driver quickly lends a hand, and the Route 1
bus is on its way from Edgartown to Vineyard Haven.

The keepers of Vineyard history are leaving the heart of the whaling community for a new home up-Island.

The Martha's Vineyard Historical Society this week announced the signing of a purchase and sale agreement for the Littlefield family's Scarecrow Farm, 25 acres tucked between the Agricultural Hall and Polly Hill Arboretum in West Tisbury.

The decision to abandon much of their campus on School street and leave Edgartown did not come easily for a 10-member board of directors that spent the last year assessing the society's current performance and future needs.

A Special Spirit Wins This Class Highest Praise

By ALEXIS TONTI

They're the largest class ever to graduate from the regional
high school. That's the first thing: 216 as compared with last
year's 158.

Developers Sketch Outline of Proposals for Woodlands Area

By JULIA WELLS

Anxious to regain the upper hand following a defeat in the
Massachusetts Land Court last week, the developers who want to convert
the southern woodlands in Oak Bluffs to a private luxury golf course
- and now also luxury housing - scrambled to put out the
word that they have a new deal on the table.

Community Services Management Appeals Designation of Voters in Union
Dispute

By MANDY LOCKE

The Martha's Vineyard Community Services labor dispute, now
almost three months old, faced the potential of further delays today
when management appealed a National Labor Relations Board (NLRB)
decision to expand the pool of eligible voters for a June 20 union
election.

Star Pitcher Carries Vineyard to Playoffs

Sam Reece Becomes One of Top Pitchers in Massachusetts

By JOSHUA SABATINI

He stands on the practice mound, a few yards past the right-field
line of the regional high school's baseball diamond. His cleats
kick up a cloud of dust as he winds up, lifting his left leg high and
raising his right arm over his head before extending it before him. The
ball shoots into the catcher's glove in a ritual repeated again
and again.

"I don't know who would want to vote our town out of the commission now," said Oak Bluffs selectman Roger Wey. "It would open up the floodgates."