All along the northern shoreline, Islanders stood poised and camera-ready to capture the historic moment Wednesday afternoon. They were eager to welcome the majestic whaling ship, the Charles W. Morgan.

The 49th annual meeting of the board and membership of the Vineyard Conservation Society (VCS) will take place at the Wakeman Conservation Center off Lambert’s Cove Road in Tisbury on Wednesday, June 26.

Some 742,000 acres of ocean south of Martha’s Vineyard will soon be available for commercial wind energy leases, Gov, Deval Patrick announced this week. A public meeting about commercial offshore wind energy leases is scheduled for Monday on the Vineyard.

For me, the ship came to life when she made what I will always remember as The Turn. We were at the far end of Vineyard Sound early Tuesday afternoon, sailing to the east.

Sitting in the lobby of the newly renovated Vineyard Playhouse, Joe Forbrich had again arrived on the Island at the end of a long journey. His playwriting debut, The Whaleship Essex, opens on Saturday.

The Rev. Karen Coleman will be the preacher and celebrant at the opening service at Trinity Episcopal Church on Sunday, June 22.

Currently the priest in charge at St. James Church in Somerville, Dr. Coleman is the first African American female to be installed as a rector in the diocese of Massachusetts.

Jillian Pyden, 13, of Edgartown has auditioned for and been accepted to attend Interlochen Arts Camp, a summer arts program for aspiring artists in grades 3 through 12. Jillian, the daughter of Greg and Lisa Pyden, will study and perform the trumpet in an intensive, three-week winds and percussion program at their Michigan campus, home of the World Youth Symphony Orchestra.

At 11 a.m. on Thursday, June 19, state and local officials, legislators and saltwater anglers gathered for the opening celebration of the Oak Bluffs Fishing Pier. The pier is the largest recreational fishing pier in Massachusetts, extending 317 feet into Nantucket Sound. Located adjacent to the Steamship Authority Pier, it offers ample space for fishing and enjoying the view.

Sparks flew over a planned loft apartment complex at the Triangle during a crowded hearing before the Edgartown planning board. Charles Hajjar wants to build eight apartments on the second floor of two adjacent buildings at Post Office Square. Traffic and parking are concerns.

A decision made by the trial court of Massachusetts to decrease the hours of the Vineyard juvenile probation officer has prompted concern from Island school officials and law enforcement personnel, who say they are worried about the long-term effects of the service reduction.