1. Marion Hilda Dewar was a prominent member of the New Democratic Party, mayor of Ottawa from 1978 to 1985 and a member of the House of Commons of Canada from 1987 to 1988.
19 Facts About Marion Dewar
1. 2.
Marion Dewar was raised in the town of Buckingham, Quebec, just outside Ottawa.
3.
Marion Dewar graduated from Saint Joseph's School of Nursing in Kingston, Ontario, in 1949 and was a nurse in the Ottawa region until 1952.
4.
Marion Dewar married civil servant Ken Dewar in 1951 and went into public health with the Victorian Order of Nurses.
5.
Marion Dewar later studied nursing science and public health at the University of Ottawa, and was a public health nurse from 1969 to 1971.
6.
Marion Dewar served as Mayor of Ottawa from 1978 to 1985, during which she strongly advocated for gay rights.
7.
In 1982, Mayor Marion Dewar participated in the ribbon-cutting ceremony at Ottawa's first feminist bookstore, the Ottawa Women's Bookstore, signifying a period of growth in the women's lesbian and gay community and underscoring her commitment to addressing and promoting LGBT rights within the community.
8.
Marion Dewar was interviewed and given a plaque for her support for Vietnamese refugees.
9.
Marion Dewar was a peace activist and campaigner for nuclear disarmament, and, for example, picketed the US Embassy in Ottawa after the invasion of Grenada.
10.
Marion Dewar appeared in the 1985 documentary Speaking Our Peace.
11.
From 1985 to 1987, Marion Dewar was president of the federal NDP, succeeding Tony Penikett.
12.
Marion Dewar was elected to the House of Commons of Canada in a 1987 by-election in the riding of Hamilton Mountain, replacing NDP incumbent Ian Deans.
13.
Marion Dewar had been invited to the riding in the hopes that, as a star candidate, she would keep the riding in NDP hands, but she faced strong competition for the nomination from future MP David Christopherson.
14.
Marion Dewar was defeated in the 1988 general election, losing to Liberal Beth Phinney by only 73 votes.
15.
Marion Dewar served as the chair of the Ottawa-Carleton Police Services Board, which oversaw the merger of the Ottawa, Nepean, and Gloucester police forces into a unified organization.
16.
Marion Dewar remained politically active throughout, supporting the political career of her son Paul Dewar, who was elected to Parliament in the 2006 federal election, winning the Ottawa Centre riding for the NDP.
17.
In 2002, Marion Dewar was made a Member of the Order of Canada, Canada's highest civilian honour.
18.
On Friday afternoon September 12,2008, Marion Dewar was rushed to a Toronto hospital after suffering a serious fall and subsequent brain hemorrhage.
19.
Marion Dewar was in Toronto attending the 2008 Toronto International Film Festival.