Barrow Author Gill Jepson is the latest nominee for the Citizen of the Year category in the 2015 Love Barrow Awards.
Gill regularly gives up her time to different projects, particularly the Furness Abbey Fellowship and the Dystonia Association.
The nomination form is full of praise for Gill,
“Gill has great organizational and communication skills which link different people and groups together.”
She has a wealth of knowledge about Furness Abbey and the history of Barrow. She gives up her time to give talks to visiting groups and schools at Furness Abbey including taking visitors to Barrow from a crusie ship around the Abbey.
She gives up her time to do these tours for no reward, but in the hope that the group may give a small donation to the Furness Abbey Fellowship, which thanks to Gill’s enthusiasm and knowledge, they usually do.
School groups benefit from Gill’s education about Furness Abbey, tourism to the area benefits through Gill’s talks and promotion of the beautiful Abbey and organizing events to raise over £6000 to bring home the Furness Abbey crozier.
The Dystonia Association benefits from Gill’s fundraising and organizational skills, the Furness Abbey Fellowship benefitted from a large donation from the Keswick to barrow walk though Gill’s organizing of two K2B teams for the Fellowship and Dystonia Association including doing the walk herself every year.
Gill has also organized a medieval fair for two years running battling against tough guidelines and paperwork.
She has also given up her time to attend Holker garden festival, North Lonsdale show and other events with a stall to promote Furness Abbey.
Gill was instrumental in working with English heritage to bring home the Furness Abbey crozier to its rightful home in Barrow.
As you can see, Gill is a great ambassador for the Abbey and the town and a worthy nominee for CITIZEN OF THE YEAR.
Good luck in the judging process Gill in what is a hotly contested category this year – whatever the outcome, all of the LOVE BARROW AWARDS nominees are winners!
BREAKING NEWS – congratulations on making it to the final three in this category, see you on the red carpet at the Forum in March!
I think this nomination is well deserved. Cut her in two and you will see Furness Abbey. She is a great ambassador for the town Even her books are full of the history o Barrow and reading them one can recognise the streets and area’s she is writing about. Makes a change from the usual impression the media give of Barrow.