Woman’s Weekly New Zealand – July 29, 2019

‘I was just an

average bloke’

ThFrom lefeHillaryft:amRex,ily

GeJurtrudeneandE,Pdmercivunal,d

wiGethrtrudeapiece’s lockof roet,ck

thatnearEdthespickummedupit

SirEdmund

Hillary

1919 -2008

AtEdhreetend-yeastotr-oldhe

gaTuakrden at hisauhome

Edmund’smother

Gertrude

schemeWalking in bato protecthim from disc overy.

sharpgravelorhre feet overprickly grass,ot andstickyasphalt,and

slos hing alrain,Edwas atypical Newongstreamingguttersint he

school boy. “I used to go forlongwalksZealand

aboutthe area,orc ut acrossddock

only sawrareglimpsesofapcheerful father. ositiveand

ensuredPercy’sstrictness andshort temperthat youthfulhighspiritswere

oftensuppressed.“Like my father,Iwasvery stubborn,”said SirEd. “Hetried to

br

day, whichmeant cyclingtotStation before7am.Hea he Tuakau

Tuakauafter6pm andcycledhomeagainrrived back at

–alongday foran1andahalfyears,untilthe family movedto1-year-old. Forthree

Auckland, thesetrain jo ys domi

I ND THEMOUN

TAIN

REMEMBERED

EdPemurcivalnd

Hiabllary,outnagineed

months

E

dwas bornEdmundPercivalHillaryinAucklandon20J

He hadanolder sister,June, anduly1919.

ayounger br other, Rex. HisparentPercyand Gertrude were living ins

65km south of Auckland,Tuakau ,asmall farmingtown

wherePercy hadbeen

climbingto theSouth Pole or buamountain or travelling overland

in Nepal. ilding aschool

Primary, athree-room scJust 800m from homehool .EdhwasTuakau

grownfromabonny baby toad

aratherskinnyboy –hemb

e rur ers

the

t ly

doing them,atirele ss

campaigner – Sir Edmund

Hillary was all of these things.

of this reluctant hero, whoBut behind the public face

died on 11 January aged 88,

THEMAN BEHI

R

eluctant hero Sir Edmund Hillary

would have turned 100 on July 20.

His ascent of Mt Everest in 1953

with climbing partner Tenzing Norgay

made him world famous, but it was his

dedication to humanitarian work right

up until his death in 2008 that remains

his enduring legacy.

Sir Ed led multiple expeditions in

the Himalayas and Antarctica, and built

schools and hospitals in Nepal.

He was also a devoted husband –

he wed Louise in 1953 and they had

three children, Peter, Sarah and Belinda.

Tragically, in 1975, while heading home

PHOTO: NORTH & SOUTH/GARETH EYRES

WE REMEMBER

OUR HUMBLE HERO