The newest batch of young terns and plovers growing up on Norton Point have managed to assure the cautious staff of The Trustees of Reservations that they are now capable of getting out of the way of our partially-deflated tires. So as of last Monday you could “go by the beach” to town. Of course you will need the requisite over-sand vehicle permits and a tire pressure gauge. The tide was exceptionally high that first day and with the southerly breeze the ocean waves were occasionally washing over the narrow part of the beach.

Well Teri Praskach took the long boat and bus trip back to my Old Country to surprise Nonna and me for my birthday. She packed tomato plants, basil and lemon basil she had started, and many other gardening gifts that don’t usually go in suitcases. We have had a delightful time with her and she is adding new flora and fauna to my Dad’s gardens. Teri is on her way back to storybook Island to help judge the vegetables and fruit in the Fair. Nonna and I remain at the mercy of Nonna’s doctors here after her latest rehab incident. I see an all clear for an Island trip in our near future.

Ann Smith, executive director of Featherstone Center for the Arts, has joined the board of directors of the New England Foundation for the Arts.

A one-day course called “Build a Mobile Game in One Day.” will be held August 18 at West Tisbury Congregational Church.

Chilmark certainly noticed that it was well represented on the front page of last week’s Gazette! Congratulations to our popular couple of 65 years, Jim and Roberta Morgan. I hope you had time to read Chilmarker Mollie Doyle’s enjoyable profile of the Morgans. It set the scene for the Meet the Fleet day scheduled for Thursday at the harbor. We looked forward to hearing tales from Jim on that occasion as he always remembers an appropriate story for every event.

Long-time Edgartown resident, Robert (Pop) Fresher, a veteran father and grandfather, is welcoming his first great-grandchild, Nora Jean Page, to his Island home.

In a late change of plans, President Obama and his family are scheduled to arrive on Martha’s Vineyard Friday evening for a 16-day vacation, the sixth time the first family has chosen the Island for a summer break.

Becoming Bulletproof, a new documentary by Michael Barnett about Zeno Mountain Farm, offers a glimpse into a world that more closely resembles a utopia than a traditional camp. Zeno was founded by Islanders Ila and Peter Halby, who met at Camp Jabberwocky.

After a friend expressed interest in their bike shop at Five Corners, Bob and Jeannette Breth thought they might take a few years off. Those plans were foiled by the opportunity to make Mr. Breth’s childhood dream come true and open an ice cream shop. Bernie’s Homemade Ice Cream and Fudge was born.

Liz Witham and Ken Wentworth care about the environment. And they want you to care, too. The couple are documentary filmmakers whose series, Sustainable Vineyard, studies humanity’s relationship with nature.