Doors are opening, windows being dressed, ice cream machines cleaned and ready for soft-serv, fish cooking wafts through the air without another soul in sight. It’s just mid-May, and we can now enjoy Chilmark Tavern for dinner, the Galley for breakfast and lunch, Menemsha Deli 9 am to 3 pm (closed Sunday), Menemsha Fish Market, and even Larsen’s are all ready to serve. Stop into Pandora’s Box for a flavor of fashion and perfect gifts, now open Thursday to Sunday, 11 am to 5 pm. Trees are in full pink bloom, tulips proudly standing straight up. Chilmark’s farmstands are packed with baby vegetable plants ready for your freshly turned garden bed. Ducks enjoy the pond at Beetlebung Corner while we turn the corner into the coming season. And when the sun does shine, Lucy Vincent becomes the place to be; families with beach chairs, boys jumping the edges of waves, dogs running free (just not near the nesting birds), shorts, bathing suits, and many bare feet have made their way across Chilmark’s sands.
Turns out Chilmark Chocolate will be closed from May 20 to 30.
On Saturday, May 18 from 10 am to 1 pm, join the U.S. Coast Guard at Menemsha Station, along with members of the Coast Guard Auxiliary, the Spouses Association, and Air Station Cape Cod, when they host the first annual open house to kick off the start of National Safe Boating Week and to honor Armed Forces Day. Enjoy tours of the station, its boats, and facilities. A helicopter from Air Station Cape Cod will be landing from 11:30 am to 12:30 pm for an up-close look. All ages welcome. Parking for the event will be in the Home Port Restaurant parking lot and streetside where legally available. This is a rain-or-shine event.
Windemere Nursing and Rehab Center is looking for Chilmark gift certificates and other donations for its upcoming auction; items and donation forms are due on Monday, May 20. Call 508-693-4645 for more information.
The memorial service for Peter Simon will be held on Memorial Day, Monday, May 27, from 1:30 to 3 pm at the Chilmark Community Center. For those off-Island who may not be able to attend, please send your thoughts or prayers to share to rssimon@vineyard.net. If you wish to make a donation in Peter’s name, please give to the Hospice of Martha’s Vineyard, M.V. Community Services, or Vineyard House.
The Chilmark Community Church’s Pizza Nights are on Tuesdays at 6 pm, all ages welcome. 9 Menemsha Crossroads, Chilmark. For further information call 508- 645-3100.
The Chilmark Public Library hosts integrative holistic health practitioner Kristin Henriksen on Wednesday, May 15, at 5 pm when she speaks about “Cannabis and Your Health.” Learn about how cannabis works in the body, proper forms of administration per use, difference of hemp versus medical marijuana, and tips to grow your own. On Wednesday, May 22, at 5 pm come to the screening of “Surviving the Atomic Bomb,” a family documentary made by the Nakamura family in 2014, featuring the miraculous story of the Nakamura family, all 10 of them, who survived the Hiroshima atomic bomb. Each surviving sibling shares his or her memories of the aftermath, and how their family kept going despite the horrific conditions. Hiroko Thomson and her twin sister, Aiko Adamopolous were the youngest members of the Nakamura family when the bomb dropped on Hiroshima. Hiroko lives in Connecticut, and her son, Joshua Thomson, lives on Martha’s Vineyard with his family. Hiroko is a Chinese-brushwork painter and a busy grandmother. Q and A with Joshua Thomson to follow the screening. Stop in the community room to see Gabrielle Whitcomb’s artwork, up through May. Read a poem aloud for our Local Poetry Audio Archive, participate by contacting adult programming coordinator Marlan Sigelman at 508-645-3360 or emailing msigelman@clamsnet.org to make an appointment for recording. Stories and Songs with Rizwan continues on Tuesdays and Saturdays at 10:30 am. Afterschool crafts with Irene continues on Wednesdays at 3 pm. Learn more at chilmarklibrary.org or 508-645-3360.
Have a great week.
