Four-year-old Wolf, born with a congenital heart defect, inspired Whangārei's Rosanna Arkle to support Heart Kids NZ while she competes in the next television series of Celebrity Treasure Island.
Four-year-old Wolf, born with a congenital heart defect, inspired Whangārei's Rosanna Arkle to support Heart Kids NZ while she competes in the next television series of Celebrity Treasure Island.
Rosanna Arkle might just have the fortitude to win the next television series of Celebrity Treasure Island.
The 30-year-old from Whangārei, who has now crossed the ditch and made the Gold Coast her home, is one of 14 New Zealand celebrities named for the 2019 series.
Arkle and the other celebs flew to Fiji last weekend to start filming the show that will air later this year.
Others celebs include former All Black Zac Guilford, boxer Shane Cameron and Sol3 Mio singer Moses Mackay.
It is not the first time Arkle has been in front of the cameras; she was also on The GC - a New Zealand reality television series that premiered here in 2012. The GC tracked the everyday lives of a group of "Mozzies" - local slang for Māori Australians - living on the Gold Coast.
She then got in the boxing ring for charity and went toe to toe with glamour girl Jaime Ridge.
Since then, Arkle has become a successful model and a social media icon — or social influencer — with 6.1 million followers on Facebook and 4.7 million on Instagram.
She was born in Australia but grew up in Onerahi and then rural Matarau, until moving back when she was 19.
Arkle's charity of choice for the competition is Heart Kids NZ, which helps families whose worlds have been turned upside down by the news of their child's heart defect or by learning that their child has acquired childhood heart disease through an illness such as rheumatic fever or Kawasaki disease.
Before leaving for filming, Arkle announced on her Facebook page it was a charity close to her heart.
"So excited to be competing in Celebrity Treasure Island for Heart Kids NZ. When I found out I was going on the show and we were competing to win $100,000 for charity the first thought that came to my mind was my friend Angel, and Wolf, our little warrior.
"Wolf was only four days old when he was diagnosed with a rare Congenital Heart Defect — a parent's worst nightmare. There is no cure or prevention for CHD and it is the number one cause of death in infants in New Zealand. Heart Kids receives no government funding and survive purely on the generosity of the NZ public."
Four-year-old Wolf, born with a congenital heart defect, inspired Whangārei's Rosanna Arkle to support Heart Kids NZ while she competes in the next television series of Celebrity Treasure Island.
In a statement from Angel, Wolf's mother and close friend of Arkle, said the birth of Wolf with a congenital heart defect turned her world upside down.
"Three healthy children, never had a cigarette or taken a drug in my life, probably the most vanilla human in the world and my baby had a congenital heart defect which they have no idea what could be the cause. My heart sank and little did I know this would be the biggest and most terrifying journey of my entire life."
One of Arkle's biggest supporters, her dad Brady Arkle, a senior media specialist for NZME based in Whangārei, reckons she has the internal fortitude that might just see her win the competition.
"She's prepares and she has a game plan. She's got the guts to do it ... she feels the fear and does it anyway and that's how we raised her," Brady Arkle said.
"Rosie is known for being down to earth and she's got great communication skills. She has the internal fortitude to go all the way and we are so proud of her."
Brady said his daughter had pushed herself when training for the celebrity boxing match for six hours a day, six days a week for six weeks before the fight.
In Celebrity Treasure Island, the stars are divided into two teams and compete against one another for prizes and the chance to win money for their charities. There are eliminations each week until the final celebrity remains.
