AMHERST — Two western Massachusetts couples are earning recognition from the Amherst Irish Association for their work in celebrating Irish culture.

Amanda Bernhard and Jonathan Kennedy of Montague, musicians and fluent Irish speakers who also teach Gaelic, and Maureen and John Sheehan of Southampton, who help immigrants and promote Irish heritage, recently received the Margaret Maher Awards during an event at the Unitarian Meetinghouse in downtown Amherst.

Laoise Moore, consul general of Ireland to New England, praised the couples for enhancing the region’s connections to Ireland.

“It’s a pleasure and a privilege to be here with you and a pleasure to honor all of you today because you are all absolutely richly deserving of recognition,” Moore said at the Oct. 23 event, which was recorded for YouTube.

The Sheehans are active in the St. Patrick’s Association in Northampton, and assist immigrants as they arrive locally.

Maureen Sheehan said the idea is to help immigrants, no matter their country of origin, maintain the same roots, language and heritage, similar to how her own parents did when coming to the United States from Ireland.

“I just pray that they need the same thing that keeps us all connected to our country,” Maureen Sheehan said.

John Sheehan said he appreciates that the Amherst Irish Association has worked to counter the image of Irish people that occurred during the Blarney Blowout bar promotion.

“We would get angry that this was their image of Ireland and Irish people and we always know how Irish our heritage is and we’re proud of it, and it was an affront, frankly,” John Sheehan said.

Maureen Sheehan thanked the association for making the event feel like she was being welcomed into an Irish home. “Ireland is just in my roots and I’m so appreciative of that,” she said.

Bernhard and Kennedy have both spent time in Ireland, often performing at area Irish functions and also instructing people in Gaelic.

“It doesn’t feel like we’ve done so much because it’s given all that much back to us,” Bernhard said.

Those who came to the event, in addition to seeing the awards presented, enjoyed tea and scones.

The association’s next event is Nov. 20 at 2 p.m., also at the meetinghouse, when Katherine O’Callaghan, a University of Massachusetts professor, speaks “Joyce’s Ulysses: What’s the fuss about?”

Scott Merzbach can be reached at smerzbach@gazettenet.com.