Dame Rosie Horton relaxing at home. Photo / Ashburton Guardian
Dame Rosie Horton is a woman who's lunched with the best and, on the way, has raised millions for charity, especially breast cancer.
Dame Rosie Horton is finally returning to New Zealand after being "locked out" for two-and-a-half years.
Dame Rosie has been living in her second home in Sanctuary Cove, Australia, since 2020.
When the pandemic struck and the Government closed the borders, Dame Rosie and her husband, Michael Horton, found it difficult to return, despite Michael's heart condition.
Their "exile" has finally ended - the Hortons returned to Auckland this week.
Their time in Australia had been "a terrible thing in my life", Dame Rosie told the Ashburton Guardian.
"It's been awful not to get back into our own country. We've been forced to be Australians."
She explained, at one stage, they "crept back for three weeks" but with ongoing restricted movement between countries, they found it better to return to Australia.
Now they're relocating to their home in Remuera, which is liveable, but requires major restoration.
There's been a problem with materials and staff but, despite scaffolding being up, it's liveable, Michael Horton said.
The Guardian had contacted Dame Rosie, who's been a philanthropist for many years, about her time in Ashburton. Now, in her 80s, she remembers "long hot summers, swimming in rivers and cycling against the nor'wester to get to Ashburton High School".
Her dad, Ellis Moon, was a Mid Canterbury stock agent while her mother, Olga, was "a thinker and busy in all elements of the community".
Olga would write and produce concerts "and we, as kids, had to perform in them".
"My parents were devoted to opening our minds to travel and have experiences all over New Zealand," she said.
When her mother died from breast cancer at 50, Rosie cried for three months.
She left Ashburton as a teenager and married very young. She admits she wasn't interested in domestic life and couldn't cook or sew. But she was skilled in communicating and sharing information. Rosie travelled internationally and advised government organisations.
Despite saying she "wasn't particularly successful in anything" in particular, she embraced charities and has worked for them for many years. In the early 1980s, she approached Michael Horton, then publisher of Wilson and Horton, asking for money for one of her causes.
"I kept on persuading him, and he probably thought the only way to get rid of me was to agree," she said.
By then Rosie was divorced, and meeting Michael started a relationship that's lasted five decades.
"I've been married to Michael for over 40 years," she said. "He is my backbone and my supporter. I love our time together, making the most of every opportunity."
Her mother's early death saw her become patron of the New Zealand Breast Cancer Foundation and her causes include Starship Hospital, Women's Refuge, SPCA, Salvation Army and The Prince's Trust which champions and supports the potential of young people.
"I'm a lady who lunches, but it's the way I line people up to become part of the projects I'm involved in," she said. "I'm sure excuses have been made not to attend as they know they'll be hit up."
She was particularly delighted a Methven Pink Ribbon project raised more than $25,000 this year and "applauds them from the bottom of my heart".
"Keep on going, but have no expectation of any thanks or rewards. Do it because you want to make a difference," she added.
It's this philosophy that has guided her life and it began with someone whose death has been commemorated throughout the world in the past few days.
In the 1980s, Rosie and Michael attended a Commonwealth Press Conference in Trinidad, and were invited aboard the Royal Yacht Britannia.
"I met the Queen and it changed my life. Her example set me on the road to be a giver, not a taker," she said.
Dame Rosie, who was made Dame Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit in 2011, is saddened at the death of Queen Elizabeth, who she met on several occasions.
"She was such an extraordinary, outgoing person. She always found something engaging to talk to you about. She never talked about herself. She wanted to know about you," she said.
Before leaving Australia, Dame Rosie and Michael have given their 300-piece aboriginal collection to the Art Gallery of New South Wales in Sydney but, once she's home, she has no particular project in mind.
"I just want to enjoy simple things like being alive and having coffee," she said.
However, she'd love to visit Ashburton again and remember her childhood.
"Just give us a call," she said.
- Ashburton Guardian
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