hey shirl , looks like i won't be able to call you up at midnight anymoreafter a few beers for a chat, gunna miss ya heaps luv. will raise a glass for ya,,, cheers here's to you!!! simon

Shirley,we will miss you greatly.I have many great memories from the times i stayed with you when i was growing up and you gave me a home away from home in New Zealand.Our thoughts are with Darryl and family at his time. Rest in Peace Shirley Your Aussie relatives Chris and Dorothy

Sorry I can’t be with you today but my thoughts and prayers are with you all. She was a wonderful friend. Joan Barrett

Our much loved Shirley, A great aunty to myself, jack & ruby. We will always rememeber your visits and the happy, warm presence you brought with you along with your funny and silly waves whenever saying hello/goodbye. May you now rest in peace and paradise. Love forever Lauren Robson

What a wonderful cousin you have been to us, Shirley. It was a real joy to be with you in person a couple of times and through all of our regular phone chats. When I greeted you with "Shirl the Girl" you always knew who was phoning. You kept coming across as being progressive and very aware of all that was going on. My having been to kindergarten in Fitzroy, New Plymouth, I kept feeling connected with your beloved Taranaki. You told me a lot about your branch of our shared Johnston tree; localities of where your grandparents, Mark Johnston and Florence Walker lived and your recollections of Florence. There was also plenty on Mark and Nathaniel's brewing and cordial enterprises and their branded bottles they used. No matter what health issues came to you, you stoically worked through those and made sure you kept enjoying all your times with friends and foremost your family. You will be very missed by them all and also by us. We sincerely feel for Darryl and family and all of your siblings and their families. Although we cannot be present for your farewell, our loving thoughts will be with you and yours. Forever loving⁣⁣⁣ xxx

Dear Darryl and Family I'm so,so sorry to hear of Shirley's passing. 😔 I have some wonderful memories of her and Warren. Such a lovely welcoming couple. I feel blessed to have known them at all. I have told my children of Shirley's delicious cheese on toast 😋 so happily made for us when we would randomly arrive for lunch, afternoon tea or supper! Wishing you my sincerest condolences. love Linley xx

My Dear Aunty Shirley. Although I never got to meet you in person, you have always been part of my life. We tried twice to get to see you, the first time - when my dad Owen passed away in 2011 (when he passed we were meant to be in NZ for a family reunion -it wasn't to be). We tried again in March last year, only to have our flights cancelled one week out from boarding due to covid. I got to talk with you many times on the phone since dad passed away, and you were so very kind to my mum Hilary when she visited you (even though her behaviours can be challenging due to her dementia) - you continued to keep in contact with mum which she loved. Dad told me stories about his kind and loving sister "Shirley" whom he loved very much. My wife, son's and I were so looking forward to meeting you in person. Now that I can't give you a hug in person I am sure that dad will hug you for me in the afterlife. Love Alan, Rachel, Liam and Hugh Johnston

So sad I cannot get to New Zealand at this time but I want to add another most important memory to this tribute book. Every time I did get to visit Shirley her most favourite thing to do was to drive around the mountain. First we would go to Opunake where she grew up and I was born. We would wander the streets stopping outside the various houses that the family lived or worked in. She would tell me family stories and then before we moved on, if there were some flowers over the fence, she would lean across and pick a couple. "These are for Mum" she would say. Then it was on to Stratford where, again, we would stop outside places we knew and more family stories were shared. Finally we would drive back to New Plymouth and go to visit our parents in Te Henui to give them the little, illicitly gathered posie. We would sit on the grave edge and talk to them. One time, Shirley stood up and stepped backwards onto the adjacent grave (fortunately a relative!). The brittle cement crumbled and suddenly she was up to her knees in a grave. "No, no!" she shrieked, "Mum, I'm not ready to go yet!". We scuttled about the cemetery collecting mulch to fill the gaping hole and planted a rosemary branch conveniently lying nearby, tears rolling down our cheeks as we laughed so much at the image we shared. My darling Shirley, I believe this time you were ready to go...it is the rest of us who were not ready for it. I love you.

I was six years old when Shirley and Warren married and moved into a tiny Hansel and Gretel style house in Stratford. It was so exciting for me to stay with them for the occasional night. Shirley introduced me to foods that were incredibly exotic in 1956 Stratford...olives, mangoes, watermelon and something called a beef olive casserole. Our darling mother was a very simple cook. Shirley nurtured my enjoyment of good food. I will never eat an olive again without first thinking of her. She was my big sister, my friend and, since our mother passed in 1982, a mother. I loved her so very, very much. To my husband, Norman, she was always Aunty Shirl who had the biggest heart in the world.