To the Editor:
Last evening, the Martha’s Vineyard/Dukes County Fishermen’s Association’s first fundraising event exceeded our expectations, by far.
The people who attended gave us their support by donations, many that were much more than we asked, and by encouragement, in our quest to move the Cape Wind project. We want to require the project to move to a site that will not destroy the essential fish habitat of Horseshoe Shoal. This requires an expensive lawsuit. We are not against power generated by wind turbines.
The music of Tristan Israel and Paul Thurlow, was exactly right to keep the positive energy up, and up, and up. Their vibe had the crowd smiling. Our guest star, Willy Mason, graciously added his beautifully crafted songs, skilled guitar playing and remarkable voice. Time went so quickly that Warren Doty didn’t have the opportunity to play his banjo.
The crew. What a crew. Beth Hiller, Nan Doty, Audrey Mayhew,and Shelly Edmonson; decorating and setting up,keeping the tables bountiful, greeting people at the door, and cleaning up. A special shout out to Jonathan Mayhew for bringing the wooden lobster pots. The cutters in the kitchen, Bill Alwardt and Matty Mayhew, cut all night for the raw bar, with no break. They were hard put to keep up with the appetites of the crowd.
As we were setting up, Peter Simon arrived and gifted us with a bunch of calendars to sell. (there are only a few left). More door prizes kept coming in the door.
Shirley Craig brought us a scratch rake and a copy of Phillip’s Cook Book, “Delish”; Janet Messineo donated two of her beautiful minnow pins, and Karen Coffee a large decorative star. It was easy to tell that the recipients of the door prizes really liked them.
We can’t wait to see selectman Gail Barmakian fishing on the new Oak Bluffs fishing pier with her door prize, a tackle bag from Larry’s tackle.
And the food. Delish. The Net Result donated every imaginable kind of pate and dip; Edgartown Fish, a bushel of necks, and Bill Alwardt another half. Emmett Carroll sent those wonderful oysters. Emmett, were you there?
The P-A club was packed, it was impossible to see everyone. Thank you, el Presidente, Warren. No one could have succintly spoke of our mission as well as you did.
The raffle was a huge success. Dick’s Tackle donated a Ron Ribb Scratch Rake, Coop’s a tackle box, the Martha’s Vineyard Shipyard a suit of Grunden’s oilers, and Larry’s Tackle an assortment of Trilene line, a bottle of Gulp, tackle bags, and tackle tubes. The raffle alone made over $2,000. Thank you all for your generosity.
The event made well over $5,000, and a generous anonymous donor will match that. We need to raise a total of $75,000 to pay for this lawsuit.
Donations may be sent to:
MV/DC Fisherman’s Association P.O. 423 Oak Bluffs, Ma. 02557
We are all very grateful for the support of the community.
Warren Doty
President
Jonathan Mayhew, Michele Jones, Wes Brighton, Bill Alwardt, Steve Norberg, Buddy Vanderhoop
Directors
MV/DC Fisherman’s Association
Oak Bluffs
