Town Column : Chilmark
By Katie Carroll
Published: November 5, 2009
Once again, the Chilmark Volunteer Firefighter's Association hosted a mildly spooky Halloween event at the Chilmark Community Center. The costume parade was full of really fantastic ghouls, Jedis, lions and a few that made people ask, "What the heck is that?" We had a couple of families participate wholly in the Halloween tradition. The Noyes-Keene family was decked out in their hippie splendor. John was hardly recognizable with his shoulder length blonde wig. The group even managed to get the grandparents, Ann and Hal Noyes, to join in the fun.
John Lamb and Linda and Cody Coutinho had the difficult task of choosing the winners this year. Big thanks go out to them for deciding on the following: best animal/plant went to Coltrane LePort, best princess/fairy was Laila Fenner, funniest went to Linden MacLeod, scariest was Solon Oliver, the grooviest was Menasha LePort, the best pirate/warrior was Tegan Fenner, the one that made the judges ask, "What is that?" was the costume worn by Ben Taylor (he was a dementor from "Harry Potter"), the most original was Jack Bennett, the best homemade went to Dash Christy, and the best overall went to Bryce Cioffi. The Cioffi family really pulled it together with the help of neighbor David Geiger and managed to dress as nearly the entire cast of the "Wizard of Oz." I wonder what next year will bring. We'd all better start thinking now.
Chilmark Public Library and the Friends of the Chilmark Library hosted a wild and scary fun house on Saturday. The library teen group set up a maze that loads of kids and even some adults dared to enter. Crazy decorations filled the meeting room from top to bottom. The library would like to thank Peter and Andrew Ruimerman, Galen Mayhew, Thorpe Karabees, Kieran Karabees, Brigida Larsen, and Jessica and Mariah Campbell for their great team effort and creative ideas.
Bonnie and Bob George were thrilled to have a large table of Vineyard friends at the marriage of their son Andrew to Stefanie Nelson on October 24 at Congregation Shalom in Milwaukee, Wisc.
Congratulations to Amy Miller who completed a half marathon on October 18 in Lowell. Her time was 02:01:33. Great job, Amy.
Local bicycle superheroes Mike Broderick and Mary McConneloug traveled to New Jersey this past weekend to race at the Beacon Cyclocross. According to CX Magazine, Mary "might well have been singing 'You Say Hello, I Say Goodbye,'" as she raced ahead of the pack winning by more than a minute. Mike had a great race Saturday dueling it out with Seattle's Nick Weighall and ultimately placing second with only a 12-second gap. This is a great result for the two as they start to tune up for the Cyclocross National Championships in Bend, Ore., in early December.
Arlene Bodge will lead worship on November 8. Kim Cottrill does a fantastic job leading Sunday school, so bring your kids - all are welcome. Soup suppers have taken the place of Tuesday pizza nights during the cold blustery months of fall and winter. All are welcome to gather for a light dinner and good conversation with friends. Soup suppers go from 5:30 to 6:30 pm. Also, don't forget the church is collecting food and donations in the vestibule for the Island Food Pantry.
The 24th Women's Symposium will be held at the Chilmark Community Center this Saturday, Nov. 7, from 9 am to 12 noon. Only women are invited to attend. The event is free but donations are welcome to cover expenses. The speakers are Jane Slater, Brigitta Lent, Sue Silk, Toni Cohen, and Margaret Knight.
All artisans and bakers are invited to contribute to the annual holiday fundraiser for Hospice of Martha's Vineyard. The Handmade from the Heart Bazaar is at the Daniel Fisher House on Saturday, Dec. 12, from 10 am to 4 pm. Hospice seeks any unique gifts including jewelry, needlepoint, knitted items, paintings, photographs, cards, toys, cakes, candies, cookies, Christmas ornaments, and more. Anyone interested in donating to Handmade from the Heart please call 508-693-0189.
This month the Chilmark School wishes for new or gently used children's books. The big wish is to form a collection of children's books from Island authors and/or illustrators. If you know someone who might be willing to donate a signed book please contact me or Susan Stevens at 508-645-2563. Merrily Fenner, perhaps your grandchildren might do the honors of placing your wonderful creation on the school bookshelf? Also, please congratulate the students of the week for October 23. They were Latham Higgins K/1, Cabot Thurber 2/3, and Olivia Knight 4/5.
This Saturday is a wonderful event spearheaded by Chilmark School PTO member Nancy Leport. The first annual Kids Clothing Swap will be held outside the West Tisbury School on Saturday, Nov. 7, from 9 am to 3 pm. This event is a collaboration of all Island PTOs. Please bring your gently used children's clothes and "shop" for the next size up. What a wonderful way to get re-supplied without spending your hard-earned cash. See you there.
