Rocks at Inkwell Beach have left some Oak Bluffs summer residents stone-cold.

On Tuesday Oak Bluffs selectmen held their annual summer taxpayers meeting. The afternoon reception provided an opportunity for the Community Preservation Committee to report on its latest efforts in civic restoration, as well as for town officials to hear from summer residents about what still needs work.

Author Fanny Howe is, by her own account, “sort of obsessed with issues of race.” Her father, Mark deWolfe Howe, was a civil rights activist and Ms. Howe, who now lives in West Tisbury, grew up in the slow-burning racial fire of Boston.

Author Fanny Howe is, by her own account, “sort of obsessed with issues of race.” Her father, Mark deWolfe Howe, was a civil rights activist and Ms. Howe, who now lives in West Tisbury, grew up in the slow-burning racial fire of Boston. These experiences culminated in ’Tis of Thee, a work of drama more poetry than play, penned by Ms. Howe, directed by Robert Scanlon and presented by actors Anthony Gaskins, Jill Macy and Charles Turner on Monday evening at the Vineyard Playhouse as part of its Monday Night Special series.

Harvard Law professor Alan M. Dershowitz will deliver a lecture titled The Israeli Arab Conflict in Fact and in Fiction at the Chilmark Public Library on Thursday, August 19 at 5 p.m. Admission is free.

Mr. Dershowitz, a Chilmark summer resident, is one of the best-known criminal lawyers in the world and a fierce defender of individual rights. A graduate of Brooklyn College and Yale Law School, he joined the Harvard Law School faculty at age 25 after clerking for Judge David Bazelon and Justice Arthur Goldberg.

Where else but Martha’s Vineyard can a grandparent and grandchild compete against athletes and long-limbed teenagers without the competitive edge? Runners return every year for the Chilmark Road Race, and this weekend’s race is no exception. Everyone from Croc-wearing children to adults clad in high-tech sneakers will navigate the winding and hilly Middle Road on Saturday to compete in the 33rd annual Chilmark Road Race.

At Union Chapel this Sunday, August 15 the guest speaker is the Rev. Susan Sparks. She is America’s only female comedian with a pulpit. Currently senior pastor of the historic Madison Avenue Baptist church in New York city (and the first woman in its 160 year history), Rev. Sparks has been featured in the New York Times, on many networks, including as a regular guest with country music star Naomi Judd on the Hallmark Channel, and in numerous comedy clubs in New York city.

Historical Produce

From Gazette editions of August, 1935:

Rev. Streit at Trinity

Trinity Episcopal Church in Oak Bluffs will have the Very Rev. John P. (Jep) Streit as celebrant on the next two Sundays, August 15 and August 22. This is his 19th year at Trinity. Rev. Streit is dean of St. Paul’s Cathedral in Boston, where he is well-known for his outreach and inclusiveness among Boston’s diverse ethnic and religious communities. Prior to the Cathedral post, he served for 11 years as Episcopal Chaplain at Boston University and has been a parish priest.

Temperature: Precip.

Day Max. Min. Inches.

Fº Fº

August 6 79 70 .82

August 7 87 59 .00

August 8 78 67 Trace

August 9 81 68 Trace

August 10 83 71 .03

August 11 87 70 .00

August 12 81 61 .00

Water temperature in Edgartown harbor: 77º F.

A USTA junior tennis tournament will be held at Vineyard Youth Tennis the weekend of August 14 and 15. The tournament will consist of boys’ and girls’ 12-and-under and 14-and-under age divisions (this means anyone under 12 years old can also play in the 12 and under division).

This is a great way to get some points for your ranking without leaving the Island. You can register at usta.com/tennislink (click “USTA Junior Tournaments” in the upper right corner, then enter tournament ID# 450414710).

A trunk show of one-of-a-kind jewelry pieces will be held this weekend at Bryn Walker of Edgartown. The show includes Cerca Trova Jewels (Cerca Trova means “seek and you shall find” in Italian), a line of handcrafted jewelry by Marie Fiedrich of Edgartown and Carlisle. Zen Bijou, a collection of handmade silk flowers, pearls and sea glass by Annie Smith of Carlisle, is also part of the show. Hours are 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturday, August 14, and Sunday, August 15, at the Kelley street store.