Editors, Vineyard Gazette:

There are many benefits and hardships from living on an Island. I would like to expound on one of the benefits which we experienced at our annual fundraiser this past August. I am referring to Rising Tide Equestrian Center’s party that was held on Wednesday, August 8. There are over 200 nonprofit organizations here on the Vineyard, and most of us rely on the generosity of Island residents and businesses to help us make our yearly financial budgets. Especially in this time of economic uncertainty, fundraising is a real challenge. Many businesses are asked many, many times for support from all of us in the nonprofit sector. I can’t give enough thanks to all of the businesses and individuals who stepped up and gave their support for us again this year, too numerous to list here. Let me just encourage everyone to give this support back to our local businesses, whose names appear over and over again as sponsors, supporters and patrons of the many events that happen here. And let us not forget our volunteers, whose help we receive on a daily basis, from helping in our lessons, maintaining our barn and premises, to organizing and running our events — we could not survive without them! I think all this support is a direct benefit of the kind of community that exists here, and thankful for that we are.

Vickie Thurber, West Tisbury

The writer is founder of the Rising Tide Therapeutic Equestrian Center Inc.