If you don’t feel ready for summer, it’s going to come anyway. And it starts this weekend. Everyone will be open at the Cliffs. The Aquinnah Shop will be open for breakfast and lunch. Cliffhangers and the Orange Peel Café will open as well. The gift stores have all been open for a while now. The Outermost Inn opened this past weekend. Now there is lots to do in Aquinnah.
This week at the library: Tonight, Thursday, May 25, the Adult Book Group meets at 5:30 pm to discuss James Baldwin’s “Go Tell It on the Mountain.” Story Time is on Thursday at 3:30 pm and Saturday at 10:30 am. Kids’ Craft Time is on Saturday from 11 am to 3 pm. You can draw your favorite animal with oil pastels. The Afterschool Club meets on Tuesday at 4 pm.
This past Tuesday, May 23, was Jean Lince’s last board of library trustees’ meeting. She has served two terms, and has been an indefatigable champion of the Aquinnah Public Library. Thank you, Jean, for your service. Welcome to Marjorie Spitz, who is filling the position Jean just vacated.
This Saturday, May 27, Joan LeLacheur will host an open studio from 11 am to 5 pm at 42 Old South Road. She will be selling her beautiful wampum jewelry. Call or email Joanie for more information at 508-645-9954 or joanlela57@gmail.com.
This weekend is the Environmental Film Festival at the Martha’s Vineyard Film Center. On Sunday at 4 pm there will be a screening of “Awake, A Dream from Standing Rock.” The directors and producers will be there, and so will members of the Wampanoag tribe.
Over the next few weeks, Liz Witham will be upgrading the town of Aquinnah’s website (aquinnah-ma.gov). This upgrade will happen in a series of stages. There may be short periods of time while upgrades are occurring when the site will not be accessible. Liz apologizes in advance for any inconvenience. Before May 28, please take a moment to complete a short survey about the website through this link: bit.ly/aquinnahsurvey.
Dance classes at the Yard are back. Monday through Friday from 9 am to 10:30 am, there are different classes throughout the week. Go to dancetheyard.org for teachers and styles. The Yard is also hosting a Prince/David Bowie dance party on Friday, June 2, at the Yard. Tickets are $10, and the doors open at 6:30 pm. DJ extraordinaire Christopher Anderson will be spinning.
The Sargent Gallery at 32 State Road in Aquinnah is now open! They will be open for Memorial Day weekend 10 am to 5 pm, Friday through Monday. They will then be open weekends in June and by appointment; call 508-645-2776 to schedule. Sargent is a contemporary gallery with a conservation mission to protect the rare and endangered. Art events during the summer will include speakers from local and national environmental organizations, along with locally and nationally renowned artists.
The Chilmark Tavern opened this past weekend, and I saw many familiar faces, including Sheryl and Eric Berke, and Lisa and Gary Foster. Joan LeLacheur and Richard Skidmore came in after a show at the Yard on Friday. The show was performed by the H.T. Chen Dancers from New York City, and it featured many children from around the Island. The dancers, in association with the Yard, worked with kids in Island schools on different dances, and whichever kids wanted to be a part of the performance could be. I heard it was incredible, and I’m very sad to have missed it.
Dottie and Barry Sullivan are back in Aquinnah for the summer and fall. They will be on a Baltic cruise with friends from late May through June 11. They look forward to catching up with everyone. They will have lots of family and friends visiting over the summer, including their two young grandsons, who will be in town for the Fourth of July. Dottie had the pleasure of her mom’s company this week while Barry was on a business trip.
Happy birthday to Nancy Benoit, who celebrates on May 29.
