Welcome home, Marcia! I’m sure you and your family have been very keen to have you home. We all send prayers and best wishes to you on your next steps in getting back to good health!  

Hear ye! Hear ye! The Westport Island Community Association presents a very special (and free) concert —  “Folklore Ballads” —  on Sunday, Sept. 25 at 3 p.m., a tribute to folksong artists Bill and Gene Bonyun.

Bill Bonyun was a New Jersey/Long Island fellow, and Gene (Eugenia) hailed from Little Rock, Arkansas. They married in 1941, and around that time bought property here. Earlier, in the ’30s, Bill worked on a fishing schooner on the Grand Banks and took photographs that have been displayed in the Lunenberg, Nova Scotia fisheries museum. He also got to know the Ipcar family from Georgetown (artist and painter Dahlov Ipcar and husband Adolph). After service in the Army Air Corps in World War II, the Bonyuns raised their family in Brookhaven, Long Island, N.Y., where they also built their recording studio.

The Bonyuns had very active years traveling throughout New England, using music and folklore to history to school children. Bill co-founded and directed Treasure Hunt, Maine's first arts-in-the-schools project, and was appointed by President Jimmy Carter to the Presidential Advisory Committee on the Arts.

This Sunday, Johnny Scott will entertain us with song and story, sharing more about the Bonyuns and America’s folk music. Mr. Scott followed a path inspired by Bill, and has taught and written about folk music as primary teaching material. He retired from teaching high school history. After the concert, refreshments will be served next door at the Town Hall.

The Town Hall was rockin’ practically from dawn to dusk last Saturday. The very talented Westport Island Artisans held their 18th annual show with so many beautiful and useful locally-crafted items, and they raised funds for Juvenile Diabetes research.  Nearly 90 people filled the Hall for Earle Shettleworth’s talk on early 20th century photographs from the area, including color post cards images from Westport. So good to hear Trudy Harriman Metzger, Jean Williams and George Richardson share stories about different island photos. Check out the postcards at Maine Memory Network (search for Westport postcards).

You’ll next hear from Westporter Pat Smith in this space. Grateful to you for sharing your island happenings with me, picking up the weekly papers and scrolling through the online editions. Please catch up with Pat at pat-dick@midcoast.com or 231-4049.