One of New Zealand’s oldest people has died just days after celebrating her 108th birthday.
Mary 'Dot' Judkins died in Christchurch on Sunday, four days after celebrating her last milestone with family.
Dot leaves behind a family that includes 10 children, 29 grandchildren, 32 great-grandchildren and five great-great-grandchild.
Many of Dot's family are highly successful, her son Robin Judkins established the Coast to Coast multi-sport event, granddaughter Dr Anne Judkins won a Commonwealth Games silver medal in the in the 10,000m walk and another of her granddaughters was a top equestrian rider.
She lived a full and adventurous life throughout her 108 years, walking the Milford Track in her 70s, flying to Paris by herself at the age of 91 and taking a scenic trip in a charter plane on her 100th birthday with her son Fairfax Media reports.
Daughter Beth described her mother as "the most hospitable and charitable woman I've ever met".
In her younger days, Dot represented Otago in hockey and played golf and bridge for most of her life and always was a natural with horses with that gift rubbing off on family.
"My mother is the horse whisperer, she was such a great rider," Beth said.
Her funeral is on Tuesday at St Mary’s Church in central Christchurch.
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