Robert Riemer is getting to know his crew and looking forward to learning the ropes of Island life. His career in the Coast Guard has spanned Alaska, Woods Hole and Puerto Rico, along with several assignments at stations in New York.

His four-year Vineyard run has been marked by a historic fire, an award-winning crew and a record number of law enforcement boardings. Now it is time for a change of command for senior chief Jason Olsen at the U.S. Coast Guard Station Menemsha.

Two Vineyarders were presented with their auxiliary boat crew certifications at a ceremony in Menemsha. The events marks another step toward Martha’s Vineyard having its own auxiliary flotilla.

With crisp fall air sweeping over Menemsha harbor, the U.S. Coast Guard Station Menemsha was presented Monday morning with the prestigious Sumner I. Kimball Readiness Award, one of the highest awards in the service. “Display that with pride,” sector Southeastern New England Cmdr. John Kondratowicz said after the pennant was raised on the station’s flagpole. “It’s not just an effort of one individual; it’s a team effort overall.

Two lobstermen were rescued off Wasque early Thursday morning after their boat began taking on water. The 44-foot lobster boat Bill B II grounded around 5 a.m. near Muskeget channel due to an unknown cause, according to Coast Guard reports. No injuries were reported.

The summer crowds and seasonal yachts have left Menemsha and were replaced this week by a 55-by-185-foot barge and crane for construction of the new U.S. Coast Guard boathouse.

The large barge arrived Tuesday night in Menemsha harbor, tugged in by the Jaguar of New Bedford and the Patrick J. Hunt of Narragansett, R.I.

“It’s finally here, which is a great thing,” said Lou Vinciguerra, project manager for the Coast Guard boathouse.