Morning greets us with lingering darkness now as the days are shortened. For some reason my lab Molly is already arising earlier and earlier in spite of my attempts to convince her that 5 am is not 6 am so please go back to sleep for one more hour. The landscape is tired, as if the effort of presenting a beautiful view during the summer has been exhausting and this, along with a lack of rain, results in dying flowers, drooping foliage and leaves on trees changing color and dropping already.
The Oak Bluffs School, already busy welcoming students, is preparing to acquaint parents and guardians with the staff and programs. You are invited to weekly meetings every Wednesday at 8:30 am in the school library. In these meetings, you may ask your questions and voice concerns.
You will also have a chance to visit your child’s classroom and work when the school hosts Back to School Nights beginning at 6 pm on the following dates: Grade 3, Thursday, Sept. 18; Grade 2, Tuesday, Sept. 23; Grade 1, Tuesday, Sept. 30; Kindergarten and Project Headway, Wednesday, Oct. 1; and grades 5 through 8, Wednesday, Oct. 8.
A free Health Fair open to the public will be held on Monday, Sept. 22, from 4 pm to 6 pm at the Tisbury Senior Center in Vineyard Haven. Tests include glaucoma, hearing (call for an appointment), blood pressure, cholesterol, and blood sugar. There will also be information on elder care, homecare and more, including refreshments and giveaways. For info, call 508-696-4205.
The Martha’s Vineyard Museum will hold the 13th annual Ceremony of Remembrance at the Edgartown Lighthouse Children’s Memorial at 1 pm, Saturday, Sept. 20(rain date Sept. 27).
The idea for creating a memorial at the base of the Edgartown Lighthouse belonged to Rick Harrington, who envisioned it as “one more light to leave on” for his late son Ricky. Very quickly the concept grew into a way to memorialize the many children who have died by placing an engraved stone at the base of the lighthouse. In the past year, 26 new stones have been added with names of children of all ages and from across the country. The ceremony is an opportunity for families and friends to gather and remember all of the 651 children who are part of the Memorial.
The Museum is steward of the Edgartown, East Chop, and Gay Head Lighthouses and caretaker of the Children’s Memorial.
Stones may be purchased by contacting Betsy Mayhew at the Martha’s Vineyard Museum at bmayhew@mvmuseum.org or by calling 508-627-4441, ext. 112.
Here is a chance to support Martha’s Vineyard Community Services: If you purchase items through amazon.com, please consider adding MVCS as your charity of choice. Instead of going to the main Amazon site, shop at smile.amazon.com and Amazon will donate 0.5 percent of your purchases to MVCS. Sign in using your regular Amazon account information and use the search box to find Martha’s Vineyard Community Services. Bookmark the site, and when you make future purchases MVCS will be saved as your charity of choice.
In partnership with M.V. Regional High School’s Environmental Club, members of the Martha’s Vineyard Youth Leadership Initiative Ocean Sustainability-in-action Project will participate in the Ocean Conservancy’s International Coastal Cleanup with a cleanup from 10 am to noon on Sept. 20 of the Tisbury Harbor beach.
Autumnal Equinox Family Yoga will take place on Saturday, Sept. 20, at 10:30 am at our very active library. Celebrate the changing season with family yoga with Ms. Sondra. Stuffed Animal Storytime will take place on Sept. 16 from 10:30 to 11:30 am, and Scrabble and chess will be held on Sept. 20 from 10 to 12 noon.
We send birthday smiles for the month of September to Aidylberg and Woodside residents: William Sullivan, Eileen McLaughlin, Spencer Hilton, Florence BenDavid, and Emma Goldhorn. Smiles to Ronnie Klein on the 19th, Corey and Amber Medeiros on the 20th, Ruth Metell and Ruthie Van Brakle sharing the 21st, Alice June Thompson on the 22nd, Ken Davey, Ann Metell, and Annabelle Metell on the 24th, and Dustin Shaw on the 25th.
Enjoy your week. Peace.