Wesley Brighton

Wesley Brighton fishes commercially for lobster, conch, striped bass and scallops out of Menemsha harbor. He is dedicated to projects that seek to maintain healthy, viable and sustainable commercial fishing industries on the Vineyard. Previously, he helped initiate Vineyard Wild-Caught, a local seafood movement designed to highlight local seafood products. He was also a founder of the Island’s fishing permit bank, the Martha’s Vineyard Fishermen’s Preservation Trust, a group established to maintain fishing access for the Island’s fishing community. Together with Jeremy Mayhew, Wes was awarded a 2015 Vision Fellowship to enable them to work together to create a documentary film to chronicle the glorious past and present struggles of the Vineyard’s working harbors. Through research and interviews, they have preserved stories and faces of a fading generation. As of fall 2022, Wes and Jeremy had compiled extensive footage for the film and had a rough cut in need of further work.