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Water Tasting 2004
Sarah S. Omer is a May graduate of Franklin and
Marshall College and a summer writing intern at The Times.
The Martha's Vineyard Times is a weekly publication.
July 29 - August 4, 2004 Edition
© The Martha's VineyardTimes 2004
 On
Friday evening, more than six 600 people gathered on the lawn of Mrs.
Barbara Boch's picturesque Edgartown home for the sixth annual Water Tasting
By-The-Sea. The event, which benefits the Vineyard House, was a rousing
success, proving yet again that alcohol is not necessary to have a great
time.
The Vineyard House is an organization offering help and support to Islanders
in the early stages of recovery from substance abuse."Our residents
are expected to pay rent, hold jobs, attend multiple weekly support groups;
we demand that they hold up their end of the bargain," said board
member Mark Jenkins. "Our success rate is higher than most rehabs
and, because of that has been used as a model by other places.
"At Friday evening's gala, board member Roy Hayes unveiled plans
for a new 40-bed facility to replace the existing three homes' 24 beds.
The site of this new facility will be on two acres of land behind S.B.S.
given to the group at its assessed cost of $150,000 by Jerry Goodale of
Goodale Construction. Materials will come from E.C. Cottle at no profit
to them, cabinets donated at no cost by R.B. Corcoran, and the design
comes at no cost from Heikki Soikkeli. The new facility will provide an
opportunity for the Vineyard House to extend its benefits further into
the community it serves, and even to give an opportunity for mothers to
bring their children.
 "We
have six to eight people on the waiting list all the time," explained
Mr. Hayes, "and some people just can't wait until a bed opens up.
They will wait for a while, but sometimes it's just too long and they
go back to using. We don't want that to have to happen."
In his address to the crowd, Mr. Hayes encouraged people to give generously
to the new project. "You can earmark your donations to go towards
the windows, the doors. You can buy all the toilets and I'll put brass
plates on every toilet with your name on it," he said.
Board member Mary Nada took the podium and reminded guests that even with
all the generosity of vendors and businesses, there is still a long way
to go to cover the cost of the building. She read testimonials from residents
illustrating the benefits of a stay at the Vineyard House and the ways
people have been able to get their lives back on track. Perhaps the most
startling were from residents' family members who were thankful for having
the person they once knew back from being held hostage to substance abuse.
The tasting had many brands of water donated by Nestlé Waters of
North America Inc. Island chefs and vendors donated delectable hors d'oeuvres.
The event also featured door prizes and a silent auction.
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