Memory of Actor and Seanchaí Eamon Kelly Honoured by Bursary

Darragh Guerin, Beaufort and Grace Foley, Killarney, recipients of the Eamon Kelly Arts Bursary 2016 from Kerry County Council Arts Office for the Development and Promotion of the Arts . Also included are Cllr Bobby O’Connell, Mayor of Killarney Municipal District Area and Kate Kennelly, Kerry County Council Arts Officer. Photograph: Eamonn Keogh (macmonagle.com)

Darragh Guerin, Beaufort,, recipient of the Eamon Kelly Arts Bursary 2016 from Kerry County Council Arts Office for the Development and Promotion of the Arts . Also included are Cllr Bobby O’Connell, Mayor of Killarney Municipal District Area; Kate Kennelly, Kerry County Council Arts Officer and Brid Sugrue. Standing from left are: Val Moynihan, Cllr Michael Gleeson, Margaret Guerin, Aidan Reidy, Shona Guerin, Cllr John Joe Culloty, Sharon O’Keeffe and Cllr Donal Grady. Photograph: Eamonn Keogh (macmonagle.com)

Grace Foley, Killarney, recipient of the Eamon Kelly Arts Bursary 2016 from Kerry County Council Arts Office for the Development and Promotion of the Arts . Also included are Cllr Bobby O’Connell (Mayor of Killarney Municipal District Area), Kate Kennelly, Kerry County Council Arts Officer and Brid Sugrue . Standing from left are Aidan Reidy, Val Moynihan, Cllr Michael Gleeson, Mary Foley, John O’Sullivan ,Cllr John Joe Culloty, Sharon O’Keeffe and Cllr Donal Grady. Photograph: Eamonn Keogh (macmonagle.com

The 2016 Eamon Kelly bursary recipients were announced at a presentation at Killarney Library on Thursday.
The joint winners are Grace Foley, a singer and musician from Killarney and Darragh Guerin, an actor from Beaufort.
Grace intends to develop her career as a singer and plans to launch a CD called Home to Kerry, a classical crossover album of beautiful songs about Kerry.

“I am thrilled and delighted – the partial bursary will be a great help to me,” said Grace,
Darragh hopes to attend a full time year-long acting for screen course in Dublin later this year. “Acting is the only career I ever wanted to pursue. The course will increase my skills, helping me to find work and an agent,” he said.
The Eamon Kelly bursary is funded by Kerry County Council and aims to support arts development in the Killarney Municipal District. The bursary has been in existence for over 10 years and continues to support arts development, encouraging high standards of arts practice in music, song, dance, film, drama and visual arts.
The bursary honours the memory of Eamon Kelly, the actor and Seanchaí, whose village of Gneeveguilla is included in the Killarney Municipal District.

“The family is delighted that the bursary keeps Eamon’s memory alive. He was passionate about the arts,” said sister of late Seanchaí, Bríd Sugrue.
Mayor of the Killarney Municipal District, Councillor Bobby O’Connell presented the awards. Councillors Donal Grady, Mick Gleeson and Killarney Arts Working Group members Aidan Reidy, Castleisland and Val Moynihan, Rathmore were also present. Chairman of the Killarney Arts Working Group, Cllr John Joe Culloty said “We will continue to ensure this bursary remains part of the core arts support with Kerry County Council.”