The tide is changing for the bird population. The summer residents are slowly departing and other species are arriving to fill that niche. The most obvious difference for beachgoers is the terns. Where there were a good number of terns in early August, there are just a few lingering souls. The smallest of our nesting tern species, the least tern, is extensively gone, headed for Florida and points south. There are many fewer common and roseate terns loafing on the flats and beaches.

Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day: show him how to catch fish and you feed him for a lifetime. So goes the familiar adage.

But for Vineyard women Lila Fischer and Hannah Kahl, the saying might go more like this: ask a man how you can empower him to help others and you will feed his entire community. Just don’t forget to include women in the conversation, too.

It was a somewhat small fish in a big pond. Though measuring just under a foot, this creature would never have to fish for a compliment.

It has been very dry in the garden world this past week. Granted, the days have been absolutely gorgeous and the nights cool and wonderful for sleeping. I’ve been busy hauling hoses and fixing sprinklers. The cheap plastic sprinklers last longer and work better than the expensive metal variety.

The 36th annual George Moffett Race, the premiere end-of-summer sailboat event, returns Saturday, Sept. 7.

The monohull race is a late morning, all afternoon handicapped contest involving sailboats of all sizes, from 16 to more than 40 feet.

Registration is $40, and must be received in the mail no later than August 30. For more information, visit the Holmes Hole Sailing Association website at holmeshole.org.

The Martha’s Vineyard Land Bank reported revenues of $95,893 for the business week ending on Friday, August 23, 2013. The land bank receives its funds from a two per cent fee charged on many Vineyard real estate transactions.

An elementary school principal from Mattapoisett has been named assistant superintendent for the Vineyard public schools, superintendent Dr. James H. Weiss has announced. Matthew D’Andrea, currently principal of Old Hammondtown School in Mattapoisett, accepted a 22-month appointment Monday as assistant superintendent for curriculum and instruction. Mr. D’Andrea toured Island schools last Friday.

Construction for the new U.S. Coast Guard boathouse in Menemsha will begin early next month, the Coast Guard announced on Tuesday.

According to a press release, construction on the new 5,000 square foot single-bay boathouse will start the week after Labor Day.

One in every four children in America doesn’t know where their next meal is coming from.

It’s an issue that has often passed quietly under the radar and gets little attention on TV or in books. But a new film screened Wednesday night at the Martha’s Vineyard Film Center, A Place at the Table, aims to change that by bringing the issue to the forefront of people’s minds.

A new plan to turn 54 acres in Katama into a nine-lot residential subdivision saw favorable review by the Martha's Vineyard Commission last week, while stubborn sticking points remained for a pending church expansion in Oak Bluffs.