News

Created: 08 October 2019

On October 7, 2019, Mayor John Henderson of the Town of Cobourg, proclaimed Saturday, November 9, 2019 as "Marie Dressler Celebration Day" in the Town of Cobourg.

Mayor Henderson (photo right) encouraged Citizens to visit Marie Dressler Museum to discover Marie's remarkable story and also invited them to attend a special Marie Dressler birthday event on that day.

Download the official Proclamation here.

Created: 13 August 2019

At Monday’s Committee of the Whole Council meeting, Marie Dressler Foundation (MDF) chair Rick Miller presented plans to expand the existing Museum at Dressler house to include two other Canadian female Oscar winners: Mary Pickford and Norma Shearer.  Rick said that he had firm commitments from partners in the venture who would supply material for the museum and assist with marketing.  To proceed, Rick wanted the Town to revise the existing lease from just a part of Dressler House to include the entire building.  After some debate, Councillors approved a revised lease and a bylaw implementing the lease was approved at their meeting on 9 September, 2019.

Read more: Plans for Museum Expansion presented to Cobourg Council

Created: 06 July 2019

Once again, the Marie Dressler Foundation (MDF) has awarded bursaries to four outstanding students in Northumberland who are planning tertiary studies in the performing arts. On Saturday, 6 July 2019, awards of $1000 each were presented at Marie Dressler House which houses the amazing Museum dedicated to the memory of Marie Dressler - one of the few Canadian actresses to win an Academy award. One of the four winners was honoured with the 2019 Bill Patchett Devotion to Community Award for exceptional community service. Many will know that Bill Patchett left us recently after a long life of working for many causes, big and small, including the restoration of Dressler house after a disastrous fire.

Ava Bogyay, Andrew Atanasoff, Olivia Rapos, Juliette SinnottFoundation Chair Rick Miller said that there were a good number of applicants this year but the selection committee chose the following winners:

• Olivia Rapos - Campbellford District High School - Presenter: Scott Fraser (member of MDF Board). Olivia will be continuing her education at the University of British Columbia where she will study Music with a focus on opera.
• Ava Bogyay - St. Mary Catholic Secondary School - Presenter: Leslie Benson (Treasurer of MDF Board). Ava plans to study music and secondary education at Bishop's University in Sherbrooke, Quebec.
• Juliette Sinnott - St. Mary Catholic Secondary School - Presenter: Rick Miller (Chair of MDF Board). Juliette plans to study at McGill University for a Combined Bachelor of Music and Science degree.
• Andrew Atanasoff - Cobourg Collegiate Institute - Presenter: Delphine Patchett (member of MDF Board and wife of Bill Patchett)- winner of the 2019 Bill Patchett Devotion to Community Award. Andrew is planning to attend York University for Fine Arts and Concurrent Education.

Short Bios are available here.

The photo above right shows the four winners. As usual, click to enlarge.

More photos below - click to enlarge and scroll through them all.  Large photos have captions.

Read more: Four Bursaries awarded in 2019

Created: 29 April 2019

Students may now apply for a 2019 student bursary award from Marie Dressler Foundation.

Eligibility:

1. You are currently enrolled in a secondary school within Northumberland County
2. You will be graduating this June
3. You will be pursuing post-secondary education starting in September in the performing arts and related programs, including music, and media studies
4. You have demonstrated commitment to excellence in your studies, your personal achievements and your contribution to your community

Four Bursaries each in the amount of $1,000 will be awarded this year.

DEADLINE FOR APPLICATIONS: JUNE 4, 2019

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