A combined event this year - the Southport Yacht Club (SYC) and Southport Island Association (SIA) invite you and your families to celebrate the colors and flavors of fall at a Bring Your Own Picnic C (BYOP) on the SYC deck and picnic lawn, Saturday, Oct. 8 beginning at 1 p.m. Cider, apples and an array of seasonal dessert “bites” will be provided to supplement your personal picnics. No RSVPs necessary, but please contact Janet Duchaine (cell or text) 860-484-9006, if you can help with set up or clean up. Rain date is Sunday. Oct. 9 at 1 p.m.

Other Southport Yacht Club news is that Shannon Killian will be the new director of the Southport Sailing Program next summer, having previously served as assistant director for the last three years. The club will host a special membership meeting on Monday, Oct. 17 at 7 p.m. via Zoom to discuss the future of the sailing program and to ensure that it is in line with the mission statement. This special meeting was requested by a group of members, per the SYC bylaws. Commodore Anne Grimes Rand welcomes the opportunity to discuss with members the future of the sailing program with Shannon at the helm. To ensure a positive and productive meeting, please submit your questions in advance by Oct. 10, using the link provided in the original email from the club.

Note that the Southport Town Hall will be closed for the holiday, Oct. 10, and that Donna Climo will be absent for the next two days for some additional training. On Oct. 19, beginning at 5:30 p.m. at the town hall you can attend a public hearing on the question as to whether or not our town water should be fluoridated. As you have probably noticed from the signs about town, this question will be on the November ballot.

Another change after the Oct. 10 holiday is that the Southport General Store will be open only half days on Sundays, enough time to get your Sunday paper, coffee, and perhaps a sweet to enjoy with your reading. The store has also begun a special pizza of the month, this month’s selection being toppings of cheddar cheese, maple syrup, apples, and bacon. I am told it is delicious.

Some lovely landscaping has been completed around the entrance to the development where Ship Ahoy once was, at the beginning of Harbor Ledge Lane. Hydrangeas, some evergreen bushes, and other plants decorate the top of a stone wall about one foot in height. Thanks to whomever created this new beauty.

In our house the thermostat is set again at 68 degrees causing the furnace to run, and my portable plants have migrated indoors. Have needed only sweaters so far, but winter coats are not too long in the future. For those reading from afar, leaves are turning; the world continues to be beautiful. May it be so wherever you are.