Aurora 2026 Award Given to Researcher Olga Lidia González Monguía

The Aurora 2026 Award, established by the Gener y Del Monte library and the Branch of the Cuban Association of Librarians (ASCUBI), was granted to outstanding Matanzas researcher Olga Lidia González Monguía, who has dedicated decades of her life to museological and cultural studies, currently leading the Documentation Center of the Palacio de Junco.

This distinction, named after the first newspaper of this city, was presented by Magaly Cárdenas, director of Gener y Del Monte and the Provincial Library Network, who highlighted that it is a recognition for those who dedicate themselves to preserving, researching, enriching, and disseminating the traditions and history of the province.

The celebration, enlivened by the Gamma string quartet, served to highlight Olga Lidia’s career, first as a Physics teacher in schools in Jagüey Grande and at the Carlos Marx Vocational School.

In her remarks, she noted that she joined the line of cultural studies with the help of Mirta Martínez, at the Matanzas library itself.

Attendees learned that she was a People’s Power delegate. Suddenly, she had the opportunity to join the Palacio de Junco museum as a researcher of sports topics and eventually became director of that institution.

Among her main research works are the histories of Palmar de Junco, important athletes, and also of her hometown Bolondrón, its illustrious sons, and her birthplace, the small settlement of La Gabriela.

Participating in the awards ceremony were Doctor Honoris Causa Urbano Martínez Carmenate, National History Prize; Lourdes Núñez, deputy director of the Provincial Cultural Heritage Center; and Yanko Hernández Cruz, president of the Union of Historians in Matanzas.

The fruitful career of researcher Olga Lidia González Monguía, laureated with the Aurora 2026 Award by Gener y Del Monte and ASCUBI, becomes a tribute to her perseverance and dedication in favor of Matanzas culture.