Formidable Trio at Possible Dreams Auction

By ALEXIS TONTI

When Rick Lee and Susan Klein first stepped behind the podium of the
Possible Dreams Auction in 2000, they thought it was a one-time deal, a
way to support longtime auctioneer Art Buchwald, who was still
recovering from a stroke, and to keep the momentum rolling for the
annual benefit.

But when Mr. Buchwald returned the next year, he decided he wanted
to turn the auction into something of a three-man show -
indefinitely.

Under the Lights: Hoops by Night Is No Longer a Boys' Game

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By CHRIS BURRELL

They call themselves the Bad Boys, but it's truly a misnomer
for this undefeated basketball squad that plays two nights a week under
the darkening sky of Oak Bluffs.

Building Inspector to Face Questions by the Selectmen

By CHRIS BURRELL

Less than a week after the Oak Bluffs zoning board of appeals
denounced the process that permitted a controversial three-story garage
to be built on the North Bluff, Oak Bluffs selectmen now intend to ask
their building inspector to explain publicly how it all happened.

Video Suspect Is Found Dead

No Formal Charges Were Filed, but Landlord Allegedly Spied on
Vineyard Haven Tenant; an Apparent Suicide

By JULIA WELLS
Gazette Senior Writer

A sordid Vineyard story turned tragic this week, when a local
electrician who was under police investigation for allegedly videotaping
a female tenant in her bathroom was found dead in his home on Wednesday
night.

Richard T. Lehman, 50, lived on Franklin street in Vineyard Haven
next door to a home he had rented out for many years.

Blue Skies, Ferris Wheels, Fireworks, Bonito: the Promise of August,
and Now It's Here

By MAX HART

"There will be cool nights, and the mist drifting over the
plain.
New crowds will come on the steamboats bringing their cars, and all
the large, glossy cars will not go to Nantucket, but some will glide
ashore here. The cicada will sing, and the human race will feel lazy,
and the sunny afternoons will be as timeless as space itself."

Henry Beetle Hough,
Advertisement for August

Aquinnah Leaders Discussing What Next After Override Fails

By JULIA WELLS

Money is tight these days in the town of Aquinnah - extremely
tight - but town officials say they plan to soldier on with a
drastically reduced operating budget for the current fiscal year.

For the second time in four weeks, town voters rejected a
Proposition 2 1/2 override request last week.

Vineyard Seniors' Bus Services Are Subject of Call for Change

By ALEXIS TONTI

Faced with changes to what they say is already an inadequate
service, leaders within the Island Councils on Aging are now calling on
the Vineyard Transit Authority to reform its senior public
transportation program.

Nestled in the new clearing among fields, beech trees and ponds, across the road from Brine's Pond Preserve, the remodeled and expanded 1700s Chappaquiddick farmhouse bought by the late Robert Marshall and his wife Ruth more than 60 years ago can now be clearly seen from the road.

Just six weeks before the start of a new school year, principals at
both the West Tisbury School and Chilmark School have announced they are
quitting their jobs.

Letters of resignation from Elaine Pace and Carlos Colley forced the
Up Island Regional school committee into an unscheduled meeting Friday
to deal with the doubleheader of departures.

"It's fair to say this was unexpected," said Kathy
Logue, chairman of the regional school board.

Retail Heads Down; For Sale Signs Rise

What These, and Other Numbers, Say About the Future of the Vineyard
Is Subject of MVC Forum

By NIS KILDEGAARD

The Island economy is changing dramatically, a panel of business
leaders told a forum of the Martha's Vineyard Commission last
week, and in a discussion that was both frank and wide-ranging, they
shared numbers to back up their claims.