News
Four words are carved in a wooden block sign hung above the door frame in Peter Martell’s Oak Bluffs office. Ever Ready. Ever Willing. Mr. Martell is one of the co-owners of the Wesley Hotel, the oldest hotel on Martha’s Vineyard. Along with George Fisher and Richard Kelley, he bought the hotel in 1985 from Paul Chase. The three men renovated it for nine months and reopened for business in the spring of 1986.
The formal opening and dedication of the Dukes County communications center saw a big turnout last Sunday afternoon. Firemen, policemen, families and friends of the center attended the four-hour open house. The 911 emergency dispatch center was relocated this past winter to a much larger below-ground facility near the Martha’s Vineyard Airport. The center serves all the Island public safety agencies.
After concerns arose last week about noise and crowding, a leadership development conference planned for early June in Oak Bluffs will change venues. “To accommodate a much larger-than-expected group, we will relocate the conference to the Featherstone Center for the Arts,” Sean Findlen
Early season boaters will be able to fuel up at the Edgartown harbor this summer, despite concerns before the selectmen this week that the fuel station would be closed.
Harbor master Charlie Blair said Monday that there would not be fuel for Memorial Day weekend because equipment at the Edgartown Marine harbor fuel dock, which is operated by R.M. Packer, needed to be upgraded before the dock opens.
Town administrator Pamela Dolby said Wednesday that fuel will be available, with repairs scheduled for Wednesday and Thursday and permits expected to be issued on Friday.
Memorial Day on Martha’s Vineyard offers some traditional events that honor fallen service men and women but also celebrates the beginning of the summer season.
The Memorial Day Parade begins at 10 a.m. at the American Legion Hall, 34 William street in Vineyard Haven with the route ending at the Oak Grove Cemetery. Flags go up at the Avenue of Flags at the Oak Grove Cemetery at 7:30 a.m., and they will come down at 3 p.m.
Burnt toast.
It was the meal that made Michael Compean’s mother certain her son would someday be a chef. Scrambled eggs and burnt toast.
It was Mother’s Day in 1988. Michael Compean was 10 years old, living in California with his family and, like many children, he made breakfast in bed for his mother.
“That’s when she knew,” he said, “that’s when she knew I was meant to be a chef.”