What's happening on Shelter Island this week?
MEMORIAL DAY OBSERVANCES
American Legion members, auxiliary, Scouts and other interested volunteers will meet at Legion Hall on Sunday, May 27 at 6 p.m. to replace flags at the cemeteries.
The Lost Sailor ceremony will take place at the Piccozzi Dock on Bridge Street at 8:30 a.m. on Monday, May 28.
The Memorial Day parade will follow in the Center at 10 a.m. and conclude with a ceremony in front of American Legion Hall. The Lions Club will set up for hamburgers on the Legion lawn after the program and Mitchell Post 281 will provide hot dogs and ice cream sundaes upstairs and down at Legion Hall.
SAVE THE DATE!
The East End Hospice will hold its biennial cocktail party and auction on Shelter Island on Saturday, June 9 at the Shelter Island Yacht Club from 5 to 8 p.m.
The live auction with the Island’s own Ken Lewis includes something for everyone, from spa vacations to sports, and silent auction items run the gamut from gift certificates to Island restaurants to evening sails, tennis and golf prizes, jewelry and art. The cost of the fundraiser is $75 per person; for more information, call 288-7080.
SIGN UP FOR S.O.S.
Support Our Shelter, the Island’s voice for the Retreat — the only domestic violence agency on the East End — is asking for volunteers to run, walk or cheer on the S.O.S. team participating in the Shelter Island 10K Run and 5K Walk on Saturday, June 16.
Participants should register independently for the race and plan on meeting in front of the library before the race for a team photo. Special team T-shirts can be ordered for $25 from Kathy Lynch ([email protected]) or Susan Binder ([email protected]). Proceeds from the shirt sales go directly to the Retreat.
YARD & BAKE SALE
Visit the Shelter Island Presbyterian Church on Saturday, May 26 for the fourth annual Yard and Bake Sale, which will also include patriotic handmade crafts for sale. The sale opens in the church parking lot at 8 a.m. “until whenever.” The sale will be held rain or shine. Donations for the sale can be delivered on Friday, May 25; just call Clarissa Tybaert at 749-2210.
ENVIRONMENTAL EDUCATION
Registration will open on Friday, June 1, starting at 9 a.m., for Mashomack Preserve’s popular Summer Children’s Environmental Education Program. There will be two week-long sessions — July 9 to 13 and August 13 to 17 — from 9 a.m. to 12 noon. The program is designed for 8- to 12-year-olds and costs $100 for Nature Conservancy members, $135 for non-members. You can register by phone, 749-1001, for either session, both of which usually fill up very quickly.
WCC ANNUAL LUNCHEON
The Women’s Community Club will hold its annual luncheon at the Pridwin at 12 noon on Tuesday, June 5. The luncheon will cost $29, which includes a choice of chicken, the catch of the day, and a vegetarian entrée. Leah Friedman, award-winning playwright and artist, will return as WCC’s guest speaker and will read from some of her work.
You can reserve a place at the luncheon by sending your check, made out to Shelter Island WCC, to Phyllis Wallace, P.O. Box 675 in the Heights. Write your entrée choice on the check.
RELAY FOR LIFE
For the fifth year, members of the Shelter Island School’s Honor Society will be participating in the Southold Relay for Life event on Saturday, June 2 in Cochran Park. Team members take turns walking around the track all night long, symbolizing the reality that cancer never sleeps. The team hopes to raise over $2,500 this year to help support cancer research and services. To help out the event that celebrates cancer survivors and remembers those who have lost the battle, you can send a check, payable to American Cancer Society, to the National Honor Society at the Shelter Island School, P.O. Box 2015, Shelter Island, NY 11964.
PLANT EXCHANGE
The Garden Club will hold its annual Isabel Bowditch Plan Exchange at the Havens House Barn on Saturday, May 26 from 10 a.m. to 12 noon. All gardeners and friends are welcome to share the abundance of their gardens in a free exchange of plant treasures. The club’s Youth Division will contribute seedlings to the event. The exchange is open to everyone. Parking is available on the town lot adjacent to Havens House.
CONTRA DANCE SERIES
The old-fashioned art of the contra barn dance was the farmer’s social networking venue. Join young farmers and old hands on Saturday, June 2 at 7:30 p.m. to “hop and holler into the night” at the Haven’s House Barn.The dances will be easy and perfect for beginners. This is the first in a series of three contra dances, which will be held over the summer, sponsored by the Shelter Island Historical Society and Sylvester Manor Educational Farm. Admission is $10 per person.
ACROSS THE MOAT
MAINSTAGE SEASON
Bay Street Theatre’s Mainstage season opens on Tuesday, May 29 in Sag Harbor with the first of three shows, “My Brilliant Divorce.” A British import gets its American premiere and is described as “Poignant, insightful and very, very funny!” “My Brilliant Divorce” will run through June 24, followed on July 3 by “Men’s Lives,” a 20-year Bay Street revival of Joe Pintauro’s story, based on Peter Matthiessen’s book, about the East End’s baymen and their fight for survival.
The season will conclude with the world premiere on August 7 of “Big Maybelle: Soul of the Blues,” a new musical about the legendary blues singer, Maybelle Smith. Tony Award-winning Lillias White will bring the 1950’s icon to life. A season subscription ranges from $156 to $186; single tickets are now on sale. Call the box office at 725-9500, Wednesday through Saturday from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.
BUG LIGHT EXCURSIONS
The East End Seaport & Marine Foundation is sponsoring two trips on the Peconic Star to the Long Beach Bar “Bug” Light on Saturday, May 26 and Sunday, May 27 from 4 to 5:30 p.m. Participants will explore the lighthouse, view a special exhibit and listen to a narration by a local maritime historian. The cost is $35 per person. To sign up, visit eastendseaport.org or call 477-2100. Excursions will be repeated on four additional dates in July and September. Bug Light is one of only four offshore lighthouse in the U.S. that receives visitors.
STREET PAINTING FESTIVAL
East End Arts will host the 16th annual community Mosaic Street Painting Festival on Sunday, May 27 from 12 noon to 5 p.m. on East Main Street in downtown Riverhead. In addition to the street painting, a number of musical and performing acts will be featured, not to mention a fine arts and crafts market, storytelling, face painting, a drum circle, various craft activities and festival food. In case of rain, the event will be held on Monday, May 28 from 2 to 5 p.m.
POETRY BY VISUAL ARTISTS
Canio’s Cultural Cafe in Sag Harbor will host poets Star Black, a photographer and collage artist, and Rosalind Brenner, a painter, on Friday, May 25 at 5 p.m. They will read from their poetry and discuss their work as visual artists. The program is free and open to the public.
