A scholarship event held at Lola’s last week marked 50 years since Mr. Brooke first held elected office.
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Honoring the Legacy of Sen. Edward Brooke
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Agricultural Fair Day Three: Sun Returns, Woodsmen Roar
Friday’s deluge of rain turned the grassy parking lots around the fair into mud pits. But on Saturday the sun and heat returned along with lots of happy fairgoers.
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Islanders Add Their Voices to Charlottesville Counterprotest
About 80 people sang and chanted at the Civil War statue in Oak Bluffs Saturday afternoon in support of counter-protests to the recent events in Charlottesville, Va.
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Draft Horses to Racing Pigs, 156th Agricultural Fair Brings Friendly Competition
For four days, the 156th Martha’s Vineyard Agricultural Fair put West Tisbury at center stage for late summer activities. Neither pounding rain nor blistering sun could keep crowds away.
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From Harlem to the Vineyard, Rev. Calvin Butts Preaches the Power of Integrity
On Sunday Rev. Dr. Calvin O. Butts 3rd spoke at Union Chapel about the meaning of integrity, weaving levity and solemnity into his message.
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Charlottesville Response Is Front and Center at Hutchins Forum
This year's forum presented by the Hutchins Center for African and African American Research at Harvard University was the largest in its 23-year history.
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Vineyard Waters Closed to Shellfishing After Rainfall
A state-mandated closure of Vineyard shellfishing areas is in effect after heavy rainfall on Friday.
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Jane Lison
Tuesday, August 22, 2017 - 10:12am
Jane R. (Marz) Lison, a recent resident of Windemere Nursing Home, died on Friday, August 18 at the Martha’s Vineyard Hospital. She was 86.
She was married to Walter Charles Lison of the Henrietta Brewer House in Vineyard Haven and was the mother of Barbara Gubitose and Karen Campbell. Her memorial service will be held at a later date to be announced and a complete obituary will appear in a future edition of the Gazette.
Arrangements are under the care of the Chapman, Cole and Gleason Funeral Home in Oak Bluffs, cgfuneralhome.com.
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William Coleman, Longtime Chilmark Summer Resident
Tuesday, August 22, 2017 - 10:31am
William Lord Coleman, a summer resident of Chilmark for more than 35 years, died August 21. He was 74.
Bill loved boating, clamming, fishing, and sitting on the front porch of Alley’s General Store.
He was preceded in death by his parents; his twin sister, Betsy; and his son, Justin. He is survived by his wife, Julie; daughter, Chandra; son in law, Lawrence; and three grandchildren, three nieces, and four nephews.
A funeral will be held this week in Chapel Hill, N.C. A memorial service will be held on the Vineyard next year, on August 21, 2018.
Arrangements are under the care of the Donaldson Funeral and Cremation, donaldsonfunerals.com.
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Memory, Shape and Color Inspire the Work of Tommy May
At an artist’s reception at the Field Gallery on Sunday, Tommy May described his process, one that includes working on 30 paintings at once. He uses the hectic pace to crowd out thoughts from his mind.
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Memorial Service for Langdon Clarke
Tuesday, August 22, 2017 - 11:34am
A memorial service will be held for Langdon (Lang) Clarke will be held on Saturday, August 26 at 11 a.m. at St. Andrew’s Episcopal Church in Edgartown.
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Rosalie Corsiglia, Lifelong Learner, Oil Painter
Tuesday, August 22, 2017 - 11:09am
Rosalie Constance Corsiglia, known to family and friends as Connie, died August 3 at Charlene Manor in Greenfield. She was 91.
Connie was born on July 1, 1926 in Greenfield to Rosalie Stoddard Johnson and Alfred E. Johnson of Hyde Park (Boston) and Dedham, respectively.
She was educated at The Bement School in Deerfield, Stoneleigh-Prospect Hill School (class of 1945) in Greenfield and Ogontz Junior College in Rydal, Pa. (class of 1947). She was accepted to Smith College as an Ada Comstock Scholar, but did not attend.
In her youth, she was an avid skier and golfer and taught sailing at a summer camp on Cape Cod.
After graduating from Ogontz, Connie returned to Greenfield, where she worked for the Greenfield Recorder Gazette. In 1952, she married George Frederic Corsiglia, who died in 2001.
From 1952 to 1955, the couple lived in Newport, R.I., New York city, and the Panama Canal Zone as part of a U.S. Navy tour of duty before returning to Greenfield where they raised five children. As a full-time stay at home mother, Connie was active as a volunteer in the Junior Branch of the Board of Organized Work of the Franklin County Public Hospital and enjoyed her involvement in their annual Follies variety show fundraiser.
Eventually, with her last child in elementary school, she found herself drawn into the retail world, initially as a sales assistant at the Mary Ellen Dress Shop and later with her own women’s clothing boutique, Cobblestones Ltd. But the educational world beckoned and she migrated from retail into the a long career in independent school admissions, serving as director of admissions of the Stoneleigh-Burnham School in Greenfield and subsequently in the same capacity for The Tuxedo School in Tuxedo Park, N.Y. and Linden Hall in Lititz, Pa.
She retired initially to Martha’s Vineyard and later returned to Greenfield permanently and re-immersed herself in volunteer work and new passions. A lifelong learner, in retirement she returned to her college roots in studio art and took up oil painting at age 75, driving herself to attend weekly adult classes at the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston and numerous art workshops and artist retreats. Her many still-life and landscape paintings now adorn the walls of her children’s homes. For many of the past 20 years, she was active as a member of the Deerfield Valley Arts Association, where she also served on the board. In addition, she served on the board of the Friends of the Greenfield Public Library and actively engaged in their annual fundraising events.
She is survived by her children: Catherine Offenberg and son in law Frederick of Newton, Nancy Corsiglia of Washington D.C., Constance (Betsy) Corsiglia and son in law Kevin Cusack of Oak Bluffs, and George Victor Corsiglia of Malden; two grandsons: Benjamin Offenberg of Venice, Calif. and Nicholas Offenberg of Williamsburg, N.Y.; a sister, Priscilla Sorrells of Phoenix, Ariz.; and a number of nieces, nephews, grand-nieces and grand-nephews. Her daughter Sarah Corsiglia died in 1983.
Funeral services were held on Saturday, August 12 at Saint James Episcopal Church in Greenfield, followed by interment at the Green River Cemetery. A reception followed at Caswell Room, Deerfield Academy.
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Meagan Brown Andrews, Vineyard Native with Adventurous Spirit
Tuesday, August 22, 2017 - 11:19am
Meagan Brown Andrews died suddenly on July 20. She was 34.
She was born on Martha’s Vineyard and grew up in Edgartown. She loved the beach, horseback riding, being with friends, and living the Island life.
She had a contagious smile and was always full of laughter. Friends were easily drawn to her. At a young age, she discovered traveling and enjoyed many trips with her family.
After losing her father, Harpo, in 2007, she decided to leave the Island and set out to see the country on her own. Her travels brought her to live in many different states including Connecticut, Florida, Texas, Washington, Oregon, California, New Mexico and Arizona, to name a few. The Vineyard was always in her heart and she talked often about coming home to her beloved family and friends. Sadly, she never returned to the Island.
Meagan enjoyed meeting new people during her travels, and helping out in homeless shelters and soup kitchens in many of the communities she called home. Along the way she met her fiancé, Alvaro Flores, and they traveled together for more than six years. They were staying with Al’s family in Mexico when Meagan died.
She was predeceased by her father, James (Harpo) Andrews, her maternal grandfather, Arnold K. Brown Jr., and her paternal grandmother, Emily Guisti, as well as her dog, Kain. She is survived by her mother, Cindy Brown Andrews; her sister Tabitha Andrews and fiancé Mike Williams; her nephews Lukah Vieira and Michael Williams; and her maternal grandmother, Edie Brown. She is also survived by Harpo’s siblings Lynn Searle and family, David Andrews and family, and Cindy Maciel and family, as well as Cindy’s sister, Lynne Brown Strang and family.
A beautiful private family service was held for Meagan, and she is now at peace on the Vineyard. For all of you that touched her life, you will be forever in her heart.
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New Life, Deep Island Roots at Hillside Farm
Kendra Mills, the proprietor of Hillside Farm market in West Tisbury, has farm sense. She innately knows when peas are ripe and which strawberries are the sweetest.
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Yvonne Cassidy, Prolific Artist
Tuesday, August 22, 2017 - 5:43pm
Yvonne Davidson Cassidy died peacefully at her home in Commercial Point, Ohio the evening of August 19. She was surrounded by her family, who read poetry, played music and shared family stories. All these things she loved. She was 87.
Yvonne was born August 26, 1929 in Decatur, Ill. to Jewett and Hannah Davidson. She graduated from the University of Indiana in Bloomington, Ind. in 1952 with a degree in art education. In 1952, she married Joseph L. Cassidy Jr. in Evansville, Ind.
A prolific artist, Yvonne concentrated mostly in oil and watercolor painting but also mastered textile arts. She won many awards over the years, including first place in Watercolor Artist Magazine’s juried exhibit 9/11.
She was the most positive person her family and friends knew. Every cell of her body was artistic. She ran deep in her thinking and was an astute listener, caring for your every word.
Yvonne called the plains of the Midwest and the shores of Martha’s Vineyard her homes. One of her favorite poems was Sea Fever by John Masefield. The first line, “I must go down to the sea again,” is how her family will honor her.
She is survived by her children: Caitlin Cassidy, Christopher Cassidy and his wife Nancy, Bridget Cassidy, and Nicholas Cassidy and his wife Cynthia; her grandchildren, Brian Fogle, Stephanie Evans and her husband Brendan, Kimisha Cassidy, Joseph Cassidy, Tess Cassidy and Sara Cassidy; and her great-grandson, Kaleb Evans.
She was preceded in death by husband, Joseph L. Cassidy Jr.
Her family will hold a private memorial on Martha’s Vineyard this September. She will be deeply missed by her family and friends.
In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to Southern Poverty Law Center, splcenter.org, or Free Speech TV, freespeech.org.
Messages of condolence can be left at NewcomerColumbus.com.
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Alice M. Childs
Wednesday, August 23, 2017 - 9:40am
Alice M. Childs died peacefully on August 16 on Bainbridge Island, Wash., where her granddaughter and her family live. She was 97. As long as she was able to, she spent every summer in Chilmark.
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Cindy Griesser-Corner, Island Native, Avid Dart Player
Wednesday, August 23, 2017 - 10:33am
Cindy Marie (Burgess) Griesser-Corner, Island Girl, of Vineyard Haven died on Friday evening, August 11 at Mass General Hospital with her loving daughter by her side. She was 61.
Cindy loved the Island, where she was born on Sept. 17, 1955, the daughter of Manuel H. and Eleanor J. (Sylva) Burgess. She was a member of the VFW Women’s Auxiliary and an avid dart player at the P.A. Club. She worked at various childcare facilities, as a secretary at MV Auto Salvage and as a home health aide for the V.N.A.
She was married to Timothy B. Corner and had two great kids with Peter Griesser, who predeceased her: Holly Wallace of Oakland, Calif. and Clinton Griesser, who predeceased her on August 27, 2016. She also has two caring sisters, Joyce Boyd and Sylvia Olejarez, both of Vineyard Haven.
Help her family celebrate her life at a memorial service to be held on Saturday, August 26 at 11 a.m. officiated by the Rev. Dr. Roger Spinney at the Chapman, Cole and Gleason Funeral Home in Oak Bluffs. The family will receive visitors beginning at 10:30 a.m. Please join the family after the service at the P.A. Club; please bring a dish to share.
Donations may be made in her memory to the Shriners Hospital for Children, 51 Blossom Street, Boston, MA 02114.
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AnnaBell Washburn, Animal Advocate, Cat Lady of Martha's Vineyard
Wednesday, August 23, 2017 - 10:39am
AnnaBell (ABell) Leinbach Washburn, a longtime Edgartown seasonal resident and founder of P.A.W.S., the Vineyard’s Pet Adoption and Welfare Service, Inc.; died in New York city August 12. She was 90.
For her outstanding record as a rescuer of hundreds of homeless Island dogs and cats, she was honored by President George Bush in 1991 with a Presidential Citation for community service. The year before that, the Tufts Center for Animals and Public Policy had presented her with its Distinguished Service Award for having made a significant difference in the lives of animals.
Through dramatic advertising that she initiated during her tenure as P.A.W.S. president, Mrs. Washburn saved the lives of more cats and dogs through adoption than were saved at any other shelter in the commonwealth, according to the materials endorsing her that were sent to President Bush.
And Mrs. Washburn, through fundraising and her own gifts, was responsible for the construction of the MSPCA shelter in Edgartown that is now the Animal Shelter of Martha’s Vineyard. With the late Katherine Tweed of Vineyard Haven, she began distributing coupons to Island pet owners to reduce the owners’ costs when having their pet cats and dogs spayed or neutered. She also founded a program on the Island to trap and neuter and then release feral cats.
Sometimes referred to as the cat lady of Martha’s Vineyard, ABell Washburn could often be seen in her aging silver Mercedes Benz with the license plate FELINE, outside the Washburns’ 19th-century South Water street home and elsewhere around the Island.
It wasn’t only on the Vineyard, however, that ABell Washburn sought to save animals. When staying at her winter vacation home on Virgin Gorda in the British Virgin Islands, she learned that the island was overpopulated with strays and began a spay-and-release program there for feral cats. At her winter home in New York, she supported the animal charities BARC (Brooklyn Animal Resource Coalition), Alley Cat Allies (Support for Feral Cats), the Animal Medical Center and NYSAVE (Save Animals in Veterinary Emergency).
She was born in Reading, Pa., on Feb. 22, 1927, a daughter of Dr. Howard M. Leinbach, an orthopedic surgeon, and Gertrude (Hyndeman) Leinbach. She received a bachelor’s degree in psychology at the University of Pennsylvania in 1948 and a master’s degree in speech pathology at Teachers’ College at Columbia University.
She worked briefly as a speech therapist in Reading, before moving to New York city to teach speech and poise to students at the John Robert Powers Modeling School. She later initiated the flight attendant training program at Pan American World Airways. There she met Stanley Washburn Jr., the director of promotions for the airline. Stan’s work with Pan Am took him to 67 countries and three continents, and often ABell would accompany him — especially to such destinations as Africa, where animals might be involved.
Stan had spent summers in his early years on Pease’s Point Way in Edgartown. In adulthood, he bought the captain’s house with a widow’s walk at 101 South Water street so he and ABell could spend their summers there. They decorated it below its widow’s walk with carved black wooden whales that had been part of the Pease’s Point home of Stanley’s youth.
The South Water street house was home not only to the Washburns, but sometimes to more than a dozen cats, for both ABell and Stanley Washburn were devoted to felines. Occasionally, there would be even more than that number when a cat awaiting adoption became a temporary member of the household. One stray — named Madame — with a penchant for walking near water, liked roaming down along Edgartown harbor to the home of the news commentator, the late Walter Cronkite, who lived a half-mile away. With patience and understanding, the famous television news anchor would carry Madame back to the Washburns. An animal lover himself, Mr. Cronkite aided Mrs. Washburn in her campaign to raise money for the Edgartown shelter.
Cats were not her sole interest on the Vineyard. She and Stan were Edgartown Yacht Club members and had a sailboat of their own, and they frequently flew together out of the Katama airport in their single-engine plane, The Coupon Clipper.
When summer ended, and it was time to return to the Washburns’ New York apartment near the United Nations, the many Washburn pet cats and adoptees would be put in their carrying cases and set in the back of a Barnes Moving and Storage Truck. A settee and an Oriental rug were also put into the truck to provide comfort for the Washburns, who always stayed with their menagerie during the end-of-season journey.
“We called it the Cat Lift,” Trip Barnes recalled, adding that the trips were delightful ones, with ABell and Stan supplying entertaining conversation as well as picnic lunches for the drivers. “And there wasn’t too much meowing,” he added.
Stanley Washburn died in 2005 and for some time ABell Washburn continued to come to the Vineyard. In recent years, she and her one cat, Sally, a black-and-white rescue, remained in New York at her apartment above the East River. In 2010, Mrs. Washburn made her last trip to the Vineyard and the South Water street house was sold.
She is survived by two nephews, Tyler Leinbach of Norfolk, Va., and Thomas Leinbach of Staten Island, N.Y., and their respective families; and by a stepdaughter, Nancy Wyles of Sydney, Australia, and a stepson, Stanley Washburn 3rd. of Eugene, Ore., and their respective families.
A memorial service will be held Saturday, Sept. 9 at 11 a.m. at Christ United Methodist Church, 524 Park ave., New York, where Mrs. Washburn was a member.
In lieu of flowers, contributions in her memory may be made to P.A.W.S., P.O. Box 1636, Edgartown 02539; BARC, 253 Wythe Ave., Brooklyn, N.Y. 11211, NYSAVE, P.O. Box 140486, Staten Island, N.Y. 10314; Alley Cat Allies, 7920 Norfolk ave., Suite 600, Bethesda, MD 20814-4525 or Animal Medical Center, Development Office, 510 East 62d St., New York, N.Y. 10065.
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O Radish, Where Art Thou
You lucky folks who made the trip to see the total solar eclipse.
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Hungry Hornworms
If you have hornworm caterpillars on your plants and are an adventurous eater, here is a suggestion to rid your veggies of this green monster.
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