Following the death of Keir McTurk in 1975 the Keir McTurk Memorial Committee was set up to commemorate the memory of a man who had devoted many years of his life to Cumnock and the community. It was decided that a suitable memento would be to create a Citizen of the Year and a generous anonymous donor donated a silver Rosebowl to be presented to the Citizen of the Year annually along with a scroll to mark the occasion.
Anyone who is resident in the Cumnock; Netherthird; Craigens; Logan and Lugar area can be nominated for this honour. It is known that there are many people out there who give voluntarily of their time and efforts to make this area a more worthwhile place to stay. This award is given --

to show recognition for the efforts of some person in the area who has rendered exceptional service -- or

has brought credit to the community -- or

has made a valued contribution to the community.

The first recipient of the award for 1977 was David Davidson for his work with Guide Dogs for the Blind. Other recipients have included John Dignam for his many Fundraising Activities for Charity; Robert Lowe who organised athletics for all ages in the area and instigated the Cumnock Half-Marathon; Nan McMurdo, a disabled person herself, for her work with Handicapped People; Jim (Buller) Reid for his expertise in organising and participating in entertainment for Charities; Steven Miller for his long association with the Dolphins Swimming Club and Rugby Coaching with youngsters and the current holder of the Rosebowl, Roseanne Savage for her work with the Woodroad Regeneration Forum. This provides you with some idea of the wide spectrum which has been covered over the years.

The Citizen of the Year 2009 will be the 33rd recipient of the Rosebowl and I would encourage everyone to carefully consider making a nomination for this event. Posters and nomination forms will be readily available at various outlets at the beginning of January 2010. These outlets include Local Churches; Cumnock Health Centre; Cumnock Library; Costcutters; Connells Newsagents; Ross T.V.; Netherthird Post Office and Logan Pharmacy. If anyone has any difficulty obtaining a nomination form, please contact the Secretary of the Keir McTurk Memorial Committee, Mrs Elaine McKay, 175 Glaisnock Street, Cumnock - Tel 01290 424297 - to whom all completed nomination forms must be returned no later than 31 January 2010.

Further details will also be included in the Cumnock Chronicle at the beginning of January.

The Selection Meeting will take place on Monday 8 February 2010 and the name of the Citizen of the Year 2009 will be posted on this site shortly thereafter.