Sports
The Dukes County Health Council Youth Task Force has hired Theresa Manning, who long has worked with children and families on the Vineyard, as youth task force coordinator.
The Massachusetts Attorney General’s Office recently awarded the task force a one-year, $90,000 grant. The grant will be used to target seventh and eighth grade students and their parents as a first step toward mobilizing the Vineyard community in preventing sustained substance abuse.
In April the Martha’s Vineyard Regional High School girls’ lacrosse team has a trip of a lifetime planned. Fifteen student athletes from this year’s team will be proud representatives of the Island community as they compete internationally playing lacrosse against the best high school teams in England.
BreAnne Russell, sophomore forward on the high school girls’ hockey team, aptly sums up her love of the game by comparing it to a well-known circular food item.
Autism Support Group
A support group is forming for families with children on the autism spectrum. The group will provide a place for conversation and sharing of resources and experiences in navigating the autism spectrum.
The first meeting will be held Thursday, Feb. 7 at 6:30 p.m. at the Chilmark library. More information is available by calling 508-645-3245 or 508-645-8002.
Daffodil Days
Each year in March, the American Cancer Society’s Daffodil Days provides an opportunity for Island residents to lend a helping hand in the fight against cancer.
Contributions received through the sale of daffodils help to keep the society’s vital resources in place for those who are or have been affected by cancer. The American Cancer Society also needs drivers to deliver daffodils in the community during the week of March 17. To volunteer or to place an order, please call 1-800-227-2345.
The fight to keep funding intact for the Vineyard Health Care Access Program continued without letup last week during a meeting of the county advisory board on the county operating budget for the coming year.
Members of the Dukes County Health Council, the charter study commission, concerned residents and county commissioners packed the county administration building on their lunch breaks last Thursday to watch as the advisory board voted to approve a draft $1.9 million operating budget for the coming fiscal year.