Octogenarian Muses

Jean Lewis MNZM says being an octogenarian is no excuse to slow down! Born in Oamaru, Jean has raised a family and given back to the community significantly, with more than 30 years of charity work, supporting Plunket, hospice shops and fundraising events. She was awarded an MNZM for Community Service in 1998. Jean and husband Peter worked long hours to build up their family aluminium business. Jean also ran a fashion store in Timaru for five years before operating a gift shop for 11 years. They moved to Auckland 23 years ago, where they enjoyed boating at their beach house near Russell. Sadly, Peter passed on recently, but Jean shows no signs of slowing down. Her four children and her grandchildren are an important part of her life. Jean bought at Snells' Beach this year and is now doing a major renovation to her Auckland home. She enjoys travelling back to Timaru to visit old friends and family. Her idea of heaven is a holiday at Lake Alexandrina. When Jean does unpack her bags, she often picks up paints and an easel to produce some wonderfully creative work and still attends art classes.

Amelia Herbert was born in New Plymouth, the fourth child to Tekla and Emil Dean. Her parents were Italian-Croatian and came to New Zealand where her father was a kauri gum digger up north, probably in the Hokianga. She attended Sacred Heart girls school from Primer 1 to Form 7 when she was Head Girl. Amelia sang in the choir, sometimes played the organ and learnt the piano from the nuns through to grade six. She loved playing basketball. After school, Amelia attended Ardmore Training College, then taught in New Plymouth. Around that time she married the love of her life, Bryce Herbert. The couple were sent to the remote township of Kohukohu to the bank of New South Wales and lived in the bank house. They later resided in Auckland where they had three wonderful children; Maree, Susan and Simon. When the children were older, Amelia spent five years selling real estate and sold one of the dearest houses, which was $250,000 at the time! Amelia played tennis and bowls but especially loved playing bridge, in fact, she has been a member of the Auckland Bridge Club for more than 50 years and plays privately with good friends, who are also octogenarians and older! She loves to read and belongs to a Probus (a social group for retirees) book club. Amelia now has 11 grandchildren and 13 great grandchildren! Widowed in 2016 she says family is the most important aspect of her life and, on ageing, she says, “When I’m done, I’m done. I’ve had a good life!”

Rosemary Stewart is a widow, alone after 58 happy years married to Barrie since she was 20. Their lives were filled with love and adventure, living in London in the swinging sixties and travelling throughout Europe, North Africa, Russia and the Far East in tents and caravans. She is blessed with good health, children and grandchildren. Her days now are busy with friends, golfing, playing bridge socially and at the club, with Aquafit classes during the winter months in a heated pool. Summer is beach time, swimming in the sea or just walking on the sand at low tide. Her grandchildren think it’s fun that she still body surfs and rides a boogie board. Once a month she joins friends at a book club lunch and always has a book to enjoy. Almost every day she works on the Herald cryptic crossword and hard sudoku to occupy quiet times. Cooking and baking for friends and family give her great pleasure, both at home and at her beach house. Music is her great love and the concert programme is always playing in the background. Classical and all the opera and Andrew Lloyd Webber shows fill her with joy, comfort and happy memories.