KATHIE CASE

508-627-5349

(kathleencase@comcast.net)

April showers bring May flowers. After this week’s rain, the Island should be in full bloom next week. We were told that the warm weather is coming and so is the sunshine — something to look forward to.

Happy birthday to all who celebrated their day these past few weeks. Big balloons go out to Kyle Boyd, who celebrated on April 22; Rebecca Lima, April 23; Emily Freeman and Caroline Hurley, who all celebrated April 25; and Kayla Dowd, who celebrates her day today, April 26.

Big balloons go out to Francis “Sandy” Fisher, who turned 97 on April 14. Sandy, who is a longtime fisherman in Edgartown, enjoyed his birthday with visits from his children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren. You can also see him out shopping and still enjoying his scratch tickets. Here is to more happy years of birthday celebrations.

Congratulations to Jennifer Rankow Klein and her husband, Tim, on the birth of their son, Elliot Murphy Klein, who was born on April 7.

Three weeks ago I went to the emergency room to be treated for an infection in my ankle only to find myself eight hours later on the way to Massachusetts General Hospital, where I stayed for four days. I want to thank the nurses and doctors for their great care in the emergency room, and to the Oak Bluffs ambulance and EMTs that transported me to Woods Hole to be transferred to the off-Island ambulance that took me to Boston. Anyone who experiences this kind of service (which I hope you don’t have to) should never complain about the vehicles that we purchase for our fire departments. The off-Island personnel were very professional and very pleasant, but I think the ambulance they transferred me to was a bread truck and the driver hit every pothole all the way to Boston, which I brought to his attention when we arrived. He replied that it was his intention to do just that.

Anyway, I am home and on the road to recovery and can’t wait to get out of the house. I have to thank my friends and family for all the phone calls and my Donaroma’s family for all the meals they have made. Not only can they grow and arrange flowers, but they can also cook.

Welcome home to Pam Dolby, who spent a well-deserved vacation in New Orleans with her brother Ted and sister in law Cindy. Pam’s husband was on his annual golf trip to Myrtle Beach.

Also home from their boating trip are Cheryl and Lee Welch. They spent the winter boating down the coast, stopping at many ports to explore.

Janice and Mike Donaroma are home after their winter in St. John. Mike travels back and forth to keep up with business, but Janice spends the winter down there doing her diving and photography of land and sea wildlife. She is a very nice hostess to the many visitors they receive. Their stay was cut short due to the loss of one of our longtime employees, Almir. He had worked for Donaroma’s for over 20 years and was very well respected by many of our clients. He had a great sense of humor and loved scaring the landscapers with his silly pranks, but loved people in general. He will be missed by many. Rest well, Almir, you were truly one of the best.

The children are back to school and it is great to hear them out and about. I am also listening for the best sign of spring, which is the sound of the baseball hitting the bat and the cheers at the ball field. I don’t think it will be too long before we hear it.

Have a great week and keep the home candles burning.