Town Basin couple gave away millions

Carl and Mary Leonard

A couple who spent much of their lives in Whangarei rounded off their adventurous seafaring life by donating more than $2 million to New Zealand charities.

Benefactors included $500,000 to Save the Children New Zealand and grants to Whangarei's library and Sea Scout movement.

Mary and Carl Leonard - who lived for six months each year on schooner Annabelle in Whangarei's Town Basin - first made headlines when they popped into Whangarei Library unannounced in 2005 and donated $25,000. The couple were not able to get New Zealand residency, but loved the place so much they wanted to make a difference.

The money went to a collection of career books for young people, still shelved under the Carl and Mary Leonard Collection banner. Carl died in 2011 on the day of Mary's 100th birthday. His wife lived until 2013, when she died in a Brisbane rest home.

Will executor and friend of the couple, Verleene Robertson, said more than $2 million was distributed to various New Zealand charities including Oxfam, Save the Children, Volunteer Service Abroad, Habitat for Humanity and Hearing Dogs for Deaf People.

Whangarei libraries also received a bequest, while The Carl & Mary Leonard Charitable Trust would provide scholarships for members of the local Sea Scout Movement. Ms Robertson said it took two years to pay out the estate, which was complex and made more so by the fact the Leonards were American citizens and had three wills in three different jurisdictions.

Save the Children New Zealand chief executive Heather Hayden in Whangarei this week met Ms Robertson.

"This came to us out of the blue. We want to make sure when we receive a bequest like this that it reflects the person who gave it. We have it earmarked for education - because that's what [Mary's] interest was in."

The couple lived a gypsy life aboard a yacht for much of their lives, working and travelling throughout more than 50 countries. Wherever Carl got work as an engineer, Mary would find work teaching English, often as a second language. The couple spent half their year at the Town Basin since 1972. "It seems they were an amazing couple," Ms Hayden said.