The Derry and Puffin D’Oench Film Award

At CHC, we’ve long recognized that educating members of the community on topics of health and wellness is crucial to our mission of providing world-class primary care. We need to engage diverse voices in our discussions with members of our local communities and broader communities. To do this, we’ve reached out to two of the great higher educational institutions in Middletown, Middlesex Community College, and Wesleyan University. We are launching a film award to students and graduates of these schools for short films about health and wellness. 

We are naming this award after two departed friends of Middletown, Puffin, and Russell Dench. They were instrumental in the life of the community and the of Wesleyan University over many decades. Russell “Derry” D’Oench was Editor-in-Chief of the Middletown Press from 1959-1991. Ellen “Puffin” Gates D’Oench was Curator of the Davison Art Center, adjunct Professor of Art History, and former Trustee of Wesleyan University. Together, they helped knit the community we know as Middletown.

We hope you’ll help spread the word about this new film award, and we look forward to viewing the submissions. For more information, please visit https://chcfilmaward.org.