Friday Conversation

Tom Degnan, superintendent of the Oak Bluffs water department, will be today’s guest speaker at the Friday Conversations group at the Oak Bluffs Senior Center, from 10 am to 11:30 a.m. He will discuss the issues involved in delivering water to us from our sole-source acquifer and guaranteeing its purity, issues that range beyond Oak Bluffs, as we all share the same water source.

He will also discuss our responsibilities in maintaining the purity of the water supply.

People who merely have heard about Slow Food — the “eco-gastronomic” movement aimed at counteracting the effects of fast food on American diet, farming and lifestyle — might associate it with the rarified, elite world of famous chefs, expensive foods and politically correct eating that tends to be too dear for regular folk.

Water Tasting

The annual Water Tasting to benefit Vineyard House will be tonight, Friday, July 17, from 5 to 7 p.m. at Captain Flanders house on North Road in Chilmark.

All are welcome at this ever-popular fundraiser. For a suggested donation of $50 at the door, patrons will enjoy hors d’oeurve by Jan Buhrman’s Kitchen Porch, music from Johnny Hoy and the Bluefish and from the Flying Elbows as well as silent and live auctions.

Chilmark Party

For the second year in a row, the Walsh family is opening their home on Middle Road in Chilmark for a fundraiser, on Thursday, July 23, to benefit Compassionate Care ALS, a nonprofit organization that helps ALS (Lou Gehrig’s Disease) patients and their families.

There will be live and silent auctions, with dinner from the Oyster Bar Grill and music by Johnny Hoy and the Bluefish.

Tom (Dilly) Walsh was diagnosed with ALS in 2007.

The Hungry Ghost

This weekend, the Portuguese American Club on Vineyard avenue in Oak Bluffs hosts the annual Feast of the Holy Ghost. An old Azorean tradition of sharing food, music and games, the feast is celebrated throughout New England. The Holy Ghost Club of Martha’s Vineyard has hosted one of the finest every July since the 1920s. The feast starts Saturday at 5:30 p.m. Catch the parade at 11:30 a.m. on Sunday. For details, call 508-693-9875.

Consequences of Deforestation on the Amazon Rainforest with Michael T. Coe, associate scientist at the Woods Hole Research Center, is at the Vineyard Haven library at 7 p.m. on Tuesday, July 21. The event is free.