The radio series “Unguarded Passage” honors International Women’s Day with a special episode dedicated to an exceptional woman, Maria Roussou, director of the Public Library of Lefkada.
Her journey led her from East to West, as she moved from Samos to Lefkada in the early 1990s. Tireless, methodical, and above all, with an inexhaustible love for the library, she managed to turn a public institution into a landmark for the island of Aristotle Valaoritis and Angelos Sikelianos—an island where poetry has always met music and Italian culture is deeply woven into daily life.
Maria Roussou laid the foundations to transform the institution she was entrusted with into the cultural hub of the island, establishing a book club, literary evenings, screenings, and fostering a dialogue between local intellectual and cultural life with both national and international cultural movements.
At the same time, by utilizing various sources, she managed to attract and organize a rare cartography archive, as well as a dedicated space with religious artifacts spanning seven centuries of history. This collection, housed on the first floor of the Public Library, has effectively become an impressive museum of icons and other relics.
Maria Roussou also organized a nationwide library conference in Lefkada and oversaw the publication of fifteen works on significant, previously unexplored subjects, such as the Castle of Agia Mavra, Lefkada’s unique earthquake-resistant building system, as well as historical maps and engravings of the island.
It is worth noting that all library activities are free and fully accessible to both residents and visitors of the island.
Research-Documentation-Presentation: Thomas Sideris
Broadcast: Friday, March 7, 2025 – Athens Time: 13:00-14:00
