Obituaries & Death Notices

PROVINCETOWN — Provincetown Public Library will hold an open mic Sunday to celebrate the work of Mary Oliver, the Pulitzer Prize-winning poet and longtime Provincetown resident who died last week.“Bring your favorite poem (or 2 or 3) to share at our open mic,” an advertisement for the event says.Oliver lived in Provincetown for decades and could often be found walking down the town's beaches or through the woods.The open mic will be held from…

Yesterday, the great American poet, Mary Oliver died, at age 83.  Her poetry grew out of a love for

WEST YARMOUTH — A $40,000 donation has been made to the Yarmouth Police Foundation in memory of a philanthropist who secured $300,000 for a state-of-the-art regional training facility to be built on Yarmouth Police Department grounds.Roger Ludwig, of Naples, Florida, and Chatham, died Oct. 28 at the age of 80. His death came about a month after he attended a press conference where the foundation announced the launch of Stronger Shield, a capital campaign…

Thursday, January 17, 2019 - 11:30am James (Jack) Preston Williamson Jr., 84, of Dacula, Ga., died on Jan. 5 in the comfort of his home. The love of his life and wife of 29 years, Carole Lee Williamson, was by his side. His cousin, Bobby (Mildred) Merritt had a house in Edgartown, and invited him to visit for the first time in 1975. He rented a house on Chappaquiddick that summer, tooled around the harbor on a Laser, and sailed on his cousin’s yacht, the “Bellatrix”.…

Thursday, January 17, 2019 - 11:28am Fay Elizabeth Sosa died on Jan. 6 at the age of 84 years old in Florida. Fay was a year-round resident of Oak Bluffs for over 40 years. She was a registered nurse and worked at the Martha’s Vineyard Hospital for much of her time on the Island. She is survived by her children, Noelle, Linda, Freddy, and Karen, five grandchildren, and two great-grandchildren.

Thursday, January 17, 2019 - 11:25am Joan Glodis died Dec. 3 in the company of her daughters in Wilson, N.C. She was born Sept. 19, 1938 to Philip and Edna Duprey in Worcester. A wife, mother, grandmother, friend, nurse and craftswoman, Joan touched many people with her warmth, talents and wit. She was a 1959 graduate of Worcester City Hospital School of Nursing, where she worked in obstetrics and met her future husband of 45 years, Frederick Glodis. In 1963, Joan,…

Thursday, January 17, 2019 - 11:23am William H. Gardner died on Jan. 7. Bill grew up in Williamsville, N.Y., the son of the late William and Diane Gardner; “surrogate son” of Micheline Hice; loving brother of Kenneth (Katherine) Gardner; beloved uncle of Lindsay (Daniel) Wright and Hannah Gardner; great-uncle of Adrianna and Scarlett Wright. He is also survived by cousins and many close friends. Bill was a great lover of family, friends, fishing and funny stories.…

Thursday, January 17, 2019 - 10:47am Daniel E. Harnen, 82, of Vineyard Haven died on Monday evening, Jan. 14 at the Martha’s Vineyard Hospital. He was predeceased by his wife Barbara E. (Dahill) Harnen in 2016. A memorial service will be held at a later date and a complete obituary will appear at that time. Arrangements are under the care of the Chapman, Cole and Gleason Funeral Home, Edgartown Road in Oak Bluffs. Visit ccgfuneralhome.com for online guest book and…

Thursday, January 17, 2019 - 10:45am Allen W. Bradley died on Dec. 13. He was 78 and a summer resident of Edgartown. He was the son of George and Louise (Mason) Bradley of Plainville. A veteran of the U.S. Air Force, Allen was an entrepreneur at heart. He started his career as a car salesman, and worked his way up to become general manager of several car dealerships, including Crest Pontiac Cadillac in Newington. Allen eventually owned his own dealerships: Bradcar Motors…

Thursday, January 17, 2019 - 10:43am Margaret (Maggie) Sibert died at her home in Vineyard Haven on Thursday, Jan. 10, at age 99. Maggie, the daughter of Clarence Franklin Larsen and Alice Marian Johnson, was born in Seattle in 1919. Her father—the son of Danish immigrants—was the president of the Charles H. Lilly Company of Seattle. Raised in the Pacific Northwest, Maggie loved the outdoors and was an enthusiastic hiker and camper. She graduated from the University…

FALMOUTH – The founder of the Falmouth Road Race has died. Tommy Leonard was 85. His passing was confirmed Thursday by Falmouth Road Race Board of Directors President Geoff Nickerson. Leonard conceived the idea of the race in 1972 while he was working as a bartender at the old Brothers Four in Falmouth. According to... .

Tommy Leonard, the founder of the Falmouth Road Race, an ex-marine and a well-recognized fixture in the Boston-area and international running community, has died.He was 85.Leonard died late Wednesday night due to health complications at JML Care Center in Falmouth, according to Falmouth Road Race president Scott Ghelfi and former Falmouth race director Rich Sherman.Leonard launched the 7-mile road race from Woods Hole to Falmouth Heights…

The Great Fire of 1883 burned down all of downtown Vineyard Haven — both sides of Main Street and part of Beech Street, more than 40 acres in all. Historian Charles Banks wrote in “The History of Martha’s Vineyard,” “When the last embers had died out, it was found that the Baptist meeting-house, 32... ...

Deborah McCormick Reed of Edgartown died at her home on Jan. 5, 2019. She was 88. She was born on Sept. 16, 1930, in Attleboro to Sam and Virginia McCormick, who were longtime summer residents of Oak Bluffs and Edgartown. She died peacefully at her beloved 300-year-old saltbox home, which has been in Deborah’s family... ...

Wednesday, January 16, 2019 - 11:18am Richard J. Andrade Sr. of Vineyard Haven died Jan. 13 surrounded by his loving family. He was an Island native where he and his three brothers — Arnold, Daniel and Joseph (all pre­deceased) — were raised by their grandparents Joseph and Louise Fialho, also of Vineyard Haven. Richard was an avid sports fan. Growing up he played baseball and later coached a little league team. He loved his Red Sox, Patriots, Celtics and Bruins,…

Daniel E. Harnen, 82, of Vineyard Haven died on Monday evening, Jan. 14, 2019, at the Martha’s Vineyard Hospital. He was predeceased by his wife, Barbara E. (Dahill) Harnen, in 2016. A memorial service will be held at a later date, and a complete obituary will appear at that time. Arrangements are under the care... ...

Edith Chinlund Brown died peacefully on Jan. 5, 2019, just shy of her 83rd birthday. Edie was born on Jan. 13, 1936, in New York City. She was the daughter of Edwin F. Chinlund and Helen Chinlund of New York and Vineyard Haven. She grew up on Gramercy Park, and attended Friends Seminary. After high […] The post... ...

Tuesday, January 15, 2019 - 3:28pm Virginia Butterworth Merrill, 91, passed away on Dec. 13, 2018 at the Sarah Brayton Nursing Center in Fall River. She was the beloved wife of the late Bert (Bud) L. Merrill. Ginny was born on April 6, 1927 to the late Royal E. and Blanche (Hall) Butterworth. She was raised in Foxborough where she graduated from high school in 1945. Ginny and Bud wed in 1947, and moved to Mansfield where they had two daughters and made their home for…

Like most Americans, I am saddened and infuriated by the current government shutdown.American presidents and our government have no right to hold hardworking Americans’ paychecks hostage while negotiating during an impasse. This is not leadership from the top down.I have always believed that government functions at optimal performance when our elected officials don’t just work for, but with their constituents. In that spirit I recently passed along two…

Richard J. Andrade Sr., 93, of Vineyard Haven died on Sunday morning, Jan. 13, 2019, at the Martha’s Vineyard Hospital. He was predeceased by his wife, Martha Fay (Brennan) Andrade, and his son, Richard J. Andrade. Jr., and daughter, Terry Ann Andrade. Visitation will take place on Saturday, Jan. 19, from 9:30 am to... ...

UNDATED – The rules that govern recreational marine fishing in the U.S. will get an overhaul due to a new law passed by Congress. The new standards are part of a suite of changes that proponents call the Modern Fish Act. They were approved by the House and Senate in December. The author of the […] The post... .

HYANNIS – Lawsuits have been filed against two Cape Cod communities by a business seeking to open recreational marijuana facilities. The Haven Center is suing the towns of Bourne and Brewster over the lawfulness of recent bans on recreational pot shops passed at Town Meetings. The company is seeking to open a pot shop on... .

Deck: Joel Ricketts received an outpouring of community support...Towns: DennisTopic: NewsAuthor: CapeCodToday StaffTeaser: Joel Ricketts had received an outpouring of community support...Main Image: Main Image Credit: Joel Ricketts studied engineering at Cape Cod Regional Technical High School. He graduated in June of this year. (GoFundMe campaign photo)Thumbnail Image: Body:  We sadly report that nineteen year old Joel…

Deborah (McCormick) Reed died on Saturday evening, Jan. 5, 2019, at her home in Edgartown. She was predeceased by her husband, Malcolm W. Reed Jr., in April 2018. Her memorial service will be held at a later date, and a complete obituary will appear at that time. Donations in her memory may be made to […] The... ...

Victoria Labbancz, 99, died on the early morning of Dec. 31, 2018, of natural causes at Green Acres, Edgartown, where she had resided for the past three years. Known by her lifelong nickname, Dede, she was born in Stamford, Conn., in 1919. She worked, married, and was widowed, and lost her immediate family of seven... ...

Roy Bunker Hope died surrounded by family on Saturday, Dec. 29, 2018, at Falmouth Hospital. Roy and his twin brother, Robert, were born at the Martha’s Vineyard Hospital on Jan. 18, 1939. Roy lived most of his life on the Vineyard, and retired to Bourne in the last 10 years. After graduation from the Vineyard... ...

Patricia Elaine Roddy, born on August 21, 1928, in Greenwich, Conn., died peacefully on Dec. 23, 2018, at home on Martha’s Vineyard, under the loving care of her family. She was predeceased by her beloved husband of 60 years, Maurice F. Roddy, her sister, Gloria Allaire, son-in-law and Island resident David... ...

Nancy B. Gerstmar, 89, of West Tisbury, died peacefully at home on Dec. 10, 2018. She was the wife of the late M. Kenneth Gerstmar, and daughter of Edgar and Henrietta Brewer. Nancy was born in Pottsville, Pa. Her family moved soon after to Winthrop, where she grew up and graduated from Winthrop High School.... ...

HYANNIS — A woman found Tuesday floating in the water off Kalmus Beach has died, according to the Cape and Islands District Attorney's office.Police responded to the beach after a man reported the woman was lying in the water, Barnstable police Sgt. Eric Drifmeyer. Police received a call about the body at 11:10 a.m. and she was found at the end of the jetty at the beach, according to Cape and Islands District Attorney's office spokeswoman Tara Miltimore. She…

A Texas man is accused of stabbing and beheading his mother's dog last year, according to an arrest affidavit released Monday by police in Round Rock, just north of Austin.Sebastian Deen Abdullah, 18, was charged with cruelty of a non-livestock animal, a third-degree felony punishable by 10 years in prison. The Australian shepherd mix that died, named Stella, was 16 months old, the affidavit said.Abdullah's mother, Diana Sanchez, contacted Round Rock police Nov. 9 to…

A Texas man is accused of stabbing and beheading his mother's dog last year, according to an arrest affidavit released Monday by police in Round Rock, just north of Austin.Sebastian Deen Abdullah, 18, was charged with cruelty of a non-livestock animal, a third-degree felony punishable by 10 years in prison. The Australian shepherd mix that died, named Stella, was 16 months old, the affidavit said.Abdullah's mother, Diana Sanchez, contacted Round Rock police Nov. 9 to…

WARSAW, Poland — Polish officials have shut down 13 escape room entertainment sites for safety flaws and the prime minister asked people Sunday to report such lapses to firefighters and police after five teenage girls were killed in a fire.Firefighter chief Leszek Suski said the escape room at a private house in the city of Koszalin, where the girls died Friday locked inside a room celebrating a birthday, had no emergency evacuation route. Firefighters found the…

Gretchen Michelle Wean of Edgartown passed away unexpectedly on December 9 2018. She was born in Fort Belvoir Virginia on January 30, 1973. She was predeceased by her mother Lynn Enright. She is survived by her sons, James and Justin Clark, her fiancé, Alan Matchem, on the Vineyard and her father, Wade Wean, and many... ...

Longtime Harthaven and Los Angeles resident Peter M. Grandfield passed away at his home in Brookline on December 27, 2018 following a diagnosis with ALS. Since his birth in 1952, Peter spent every summer at his family’s house on Martha’s Vineyard. He learned to swim and sail at the Vineyard Haven Yacht Club and was... ...

The Outer Beach of Cape Cod certainly saw its share of shipwrecks throughout its history, and with it came its share of people who perished before they could be rescued.The job of being a rescuer for the Mass. Humane Society, the U.S. Lifesaving Service, and the U.S. Coast Guard could be traumatic in so many ways, especially when it involved retrieving the bodies of those who died.Now, imagine their surprise when one of those victims, presumed dead, turned out to be…

ORLEANS — A balloon ban could be aired out at town meeting in the spring.The Board of Selectmen voted Wednesday night to set a public hearing for a proposed bylaw that would ban “lighter-than-air gas” balloons in the town.A draft of a general bylaw was sent to the board by the Conservation Commission, which has been studying recent bans passed in Chatham and Nantucket.The intent is to address the concerns about the dangers posed to wildlife…

Dee Moyer of West Tisbury, who managed to return home even as she declined from esophageal cancer, died Dec. 19 with her son Paul S. Moyer 3rd and friends by her side. She was 75 and had lived most of the past 40 years on the Island. Always a maverick with a bit of mischief […] The post Dee Moyer appeared first... ...

Wednesday, January 2, 2019 - 2:41pm Elizabeth (Anne) Carter died unexpectedly on Sunday, Dec. 23 at Massachusetts General Hospital with her loving family by her side. She was born on New Year’s Day, Jan. 1, 1943, in Ballintubber, County Roscommon in Ireland to Cissie Mahon Kelly and Brodie Kelly. Anne grew up in Ballintubber and attended Mount Sackville Private Convent School in Chapelizod, Ireland and then the Sisters of Charity, Kings Inn St. Dublin. Her studies…

Wednesday, January 2, 2019 - 2:32pm Jennifer Gardner died on the afternoon of Jan. 1 after along and valiant fight against an inoperable brain tumor. She died at her beloved West Tisbury home in the company of family and friends. Jennifer touched many lives in her 54 years. She was always ready to help people and animals in need. She was a volunteer emergency medical technician for Tri-Town Ambulance for 10 years. She was a successful…

Wednesday, January 2, 2019 - 2:21pm Dee Moyer of West Tisbury, who managed to return home even as she declined from esophageal cancer, died Dec. 19 with her son Paul S. Moyer 3rd and friends by her side. She was 75 and had lived most of the past 40 years on the Island. Always a maverick with a bit of mischief in her eye, Dee gathered a diverse group of friends over the years. For example, her 1966 marriage to Paul S. Moyer Jr. ended in divorce decades ago, but he remained…

In the pages we usually devote to opinions, we’ve decided to celebrate the lives of Islanders who died in 2018. We have included those who lived for at least some time on Martha’s Vineyard, and for whom information about their life here (including their town) was available in their obituary, from which the following... ...

Jennifer Gardner died on the afternoon of Jan. 1 after a long and valiant fight against an inoperable brain tumor. She died at her beloved West Tisbury home in the company of family and friends. Jennifer is survived by her children, Griffin and Leila Gardner; her brother Stuart, her father Douglass and mother Leila... ...

WELLFLEET – The Cape Cod National Seashore Advisory Commission is challenging recent claims made by the Interior Department. Legislation reauthorizing the commission, which advises the seashore superintendent and federal government, has passed through the House and is pending in the Senate. The commission was created at... .

Deck: Allegedly passed a counterfeit note at McDonald's....Towns: WarehamTopic: Police and Fire NewsHub Category: Police and FireAuthor: CapeCodToday StaffTeaser: Allegedly passed a counterfeit note at McDonald's...Main Image: Thumbnail Image: Body:  Wareham Police report the arrest of a New Bedford man on charges of uttering a counterfeit note.  Brandon Stowell, age 23, is accused…

Roy B. Hope died surrounded by family on Saturday, December 29, at Falmouth Hospital. A viewing will be held for family and friends at Nickerson-Bourne Funeral Home, 40 MacArthur Blvd. on Saturday, January 5, from 9:30 am to 12:30 pm. Immediately following from 1-4 pm all are invited to Lindsay’s Family Restaurant,... ...

The Edgartown Inn has sold to developer Charles Hajjar, a Milton-based developer, for $5 million. Earle K. Radford Jr. purchased the historic inn in 1973, operating it until his death in 2007. After being passed down through Radford’s family, it was sold on Dec. 21. The inn includes 12 rooms in the main building at... ...

JACKSONVILLE BEACH, FLORIDA — A North Atlantic right whale calf spotted Friday off Florida with its mother is the first of the calving season for the imperiled marine mammals, after last year’s season passed with no documented births."Super excited, super excited," said Christopher Slay, owner of Coastwise Consulting, the company that provided endangered species observers aboard a dredging vessel off Jacksonville Beach, near the mouth of the St. Johns River.…

JACKSONVILLE BEACH, FLORIDA — A North Atlantic right whale calf spotted Friday off Florida with its mother is the first of the calving season for the imperiled marine mammals, after last year’s season passed with no documented births.“Super excited, super excited,” said Christopher Slay, owner of Coastwise Consulting, the company that provided endangered species observers aboard a dredging vessel off Jacksonville Beach, near the mouth of…

President Donald Trump sought to deflect blame for the deaths of two Guatemalan children in U.S. custody by claiming they were "very sick" when they arrived, even though immigration authorities have said both children passed initial health checks.The mother of the boy who died Christmas Eve told The Associated Press on Saturday that her son was healthy when he left with his father on their journey hoping to migrate to the U.S.Meanwhile,…

Joan Glodis, born September 19, 1938, to Philip and Edna Duprey in Worcester,  died December 3 in the company of her daughters in Wilson, North Carolina. A wife, mother, grandmother, friend, nurse and craftswoman, Joan touched many people with her warmth, talents and wit. She was a 1959 graduate of Worcester City... ...