During a brief public appearance on the Vineyard on Saturday, Massachusetts Gov. Deval Patrick defended his plan to allow large-scale commercial wind development off the Island. And he insisted that Islanders still have a say in shaping the future.

“It’s really up to Martha’s Vineyard to decide what is right,” he told a small gathering of print, radio and television reporters following a tour of the Martha’s Vineyard Hospital.

Mr. Patrick, whose November reelection campaign is beginning to heat up, was on the Vineyard for a private fundraiser Saturday night at the home of Richard Friedman on Oyster Pond in Edgartown. The event was hosted by Valerie Jarrett, a close friend and senior advisor to President Obama, and longtime summer resident of Oak Bluffs.

The vacationing Mr. Obama did not attend the fundraiser.

But before the event Mr. Patrick appeared at the hospital to honor several emergency and medical personnel who were involved in saving the life of a man who suffered cardiac arrest early in the summer. In the halls of the new hospital, the governor and members of his administration spoke to the importance of CPR training for all, and thanked some dozen Islanders for providing life-saving emergency care for Tony Esposito.

And then Mr. Patrick faced the press for a series of questions on his policies and campaign issues, beginning with wind energy.

“We’re going to have to get serious about breaking our dependence on oil and gas,” said the governor, answering questions about his ocean management plan. The plan targets two areas near the Vineyard as the only allowable places for commercial wind farms in the commonwealth: one off Noman’s Land and the other off Cuttyhunk. Mr. Patrick emphasized that the plan was designed to make offshore areas eligible for potential wind farms. “That’s all it does. It’s a plan that has discerned which areas make sense for that kind of use,” he said. He also said the plan emphasizes local control and local decision making. “It doesn’t mean that every location is right, but it also means that not every location is wrong, and we’re going to have to get serious about moving in the direction of clean and alternative energy and energy efficiency,” the governor said.

And he urged Islanders to be open to the benefits of the plan. “The local residents should express themselves, but it’s not by railing against an oceans plan. It’s by dealing with a specific proposal when and if it comes forward. And the oceans bill gives precisely that opportunity. To engage locally with local residents on what makes sense for local communities,” Mr. Patrick said.

Mr. Patrick credited the state for being ahead of the curve on energy. “I will say that in this administration, I’m very, very proud of the fact that we have staked out a national leadership position in clean and alternative energy . . . the more we do that the stronger our economic prospects are,” he said. “We’ve had a tenfold increase in wind generation in the last three and a half years, a twenty fold increase in solar generation . . . There’s some wonderful ideas here in the commonwealth, and technologies around that. And more and more products in all of those fields are being made here as well, so it’s bringing back our manufacturing sector.”

In a moment of party unity, Mr. Patrick praised President Obama and even gave himself a small pat on the back for his role in Mr. Obama’s election. “I was enthusiastic about his run for Senate and over the moon about his run for President,” he said. “I’m very, very proud. I’m proud of the small contribution I was able to make as co-chair of the campaign, I’m proud of the leadership that he’s brought to the White House and to our country at one of the most challenging times in our history. I’m proud of the fact that he leads with conviction, that it’s not just about being a clever politician but about really what kinds of values are at stake.”

Mr. Patrick said he believes he shares a “successful working relationship” with President Obama, and that the Obama administration and the commonwealth have been equally supportive of each other. “National health care is modeled on our health care, so we’ve had a lot of involvement in that,” said Mr. Patrick. “The stimulus bill has in it the largest energy bill in the history of America. And it is very much helpful in developing . . . our own alternative and clean energy strategy here in the commonwealth. So I think its been a very helpful.” relationship.”

As for why he is seeking a second term in office, Mr. Patrick went down the list: “For me, it’s about finishing what we started,” he said, adding: “There’s still a lot of people out of work . . . We’ve had our students perform at the top of the nation in student achievement, and have for each of the last three years. And we have some tools now . . . to close the achievement gap but we still have an achievement gap we need to close. Ninety seven and a half per cent of our residents have health insurance, more than any other state in America, but it still costs too much and we need to get those costs down. So we’ve made, I think, very important progress. Were securing a better, stronger commonwealth, for a long, long time.”