Edwina Guckian is 2023 Leitrim Guardian Person of the Year

Edwina Guckian has been selected as the 2023 Leitrim Guardian Person of the Year.
According to the panel of selectors “She deserves this award due to her consistent efforts to make life better and more enjoyable for her neighbours and for many older people in the local community with ideas such as the modern day Mummers.

“This was a project bringing Ceili music and dance to the doorsteps of older people suffering from rural isolation during lockdown. Edwina and the performers involved brought a lot of joy and also are keeping an old tradition alive by wearing the distinctive straw head-dress.

“Edwina also organised the sending out of seeds for growing the oats so that people could make their own headdress in conjunction with Leitrim County Council. Thanks to Edwina and the involvement of CreativeIrl and Leitrim County Council there are over 250 people now taking part in growing oats in Leitrim and across Ireland.

“The Sowing the Seed project which she has been working on for the past two years is reconnecting the Leitrim community with the land through the growing of organic oats. From this they look at soil quality, biodiversity and what can be made sustainable from the oats and straw.

“This initiative started during lockdown but thankfully will continue due to the importance of keeping such traditions alive.
“She also involved local talented musicians, dancers and singers.

“She has many other strings to her bow such as representing Leitrim in the Rose of Tralee competition some years ago and helping Chernobyl children by going over to volunteer there plus the sale of her CD for this cause.

“She also runs a very successful dance company called Àirc Damhsa Culture Club which enables many young locals to become expert Sean Nòs dancers. They have won many illustrious national awards.

“Her qualities of a genuine caring nature, her community awareness, her consistent friendliness, her cheerful disposition and her refusal to become big headed by all this success mark her out as a very worthy recipient for this award.”