Guilford is a town that values its history—and now has the accolades to prove it. On April 4, the State Historic Preservation Office and the Connecticut Trust for Historic Preservation presented the Guilford Preservation Alliance (GPA) with the Harlan Griswold award, Connecticut’s foremost preservation award.

GPA, an all-volunteer group founded in 1980, has worked for decades to advocate for historic homes and districts, preserve and document the history of the town, and promote heritage tourism, among other projects.

A former member nominated the group for this award. GPA President Shirley Girioni said when she was informed of the nomination, she thought the GPA might get a certificate or a pat on the back, but she never imagined GPA would receive the top award, an award that isn’t given every year.

“We were stunned and so happy and proud,” she said.

Girioni said there are a lot of reasons why GPA received this award, but she said the fact that GPA strives to go beyond just preservation likely played a big role.

“I think it is the whole package of achievements over 39 years and the fact that we have tried to collaborate with other agencies—the town, the state, and other non-profits in town—and that we have been proactive instead of reactive to issues,” she said. “In other words, we have tried to prevent things from happening that would be devastating to historic resources and we also look out for the natural resources and cultural resources.”

Girioni also pointed to GPA’s push to promote heritage tourism, encouraging people to come to town to see historic homes and taking walking tours of the historic districts.

“We also pushed the boundaries of what preservation was. I think it’s the information kiosk with the interactive display and our website promoting history in Guilford and the historic resources,” she said. “…It brought people to town to spend their dollars at the house museums and restaurants and the hotels and the retail stores, too.”

The award doesn’t come with a check, but Girioni said she sees the award as a stamp of approval regarding the direction and mission of GPA.

“I think it means that our vision has been spot on and that we are recognized for being pioneers, so to speak, in the outreach of the organization into other areas so that we can affect the community in a positive way and bring other people into the community,” she said.

Over the years, GPA has participated in the establishment of two Guilford town historic districts; helped in placing the Guilford Town Center Historic District on the National Register of Historic Places; assisted in obtaining state funding of restoration work on the Henry Whitfield Museum; completed planting 475 trees on Church, Water, and 22 other streets within the borough of Guilford and along Whitfield Street along the Green; provided financial support for the preservation of historic books and for the preparation of an electronic catalog of historic resources at the Guilford Free Library; and sponsored the Witness Stones Project since 2017 among many other achievements.

Girioni said volunteers and GPA founders deserve the credit for this award and all of the GPA’s achievements.

“Those men and women who started the group in 1980 were people of vision and passion for preservation and passion for the past, but yet I think they set the stage for us moving beyond the past for outreach,” she said. “I am grateful to the founders and the hundreds of volunteers who have enabled the GPA to exist. Our present board is phenomenally active and has diverse interests. I think that is what you need to keep a group alive.”

To learn more about the Guilford Preservation Alliance, visit guilfordpreservation.org.