OBITUARY
Heather Battersby
W
ell known wine stalwart, Heather Battersby, passed away on December 17 last year, after a well-fought battle with cancer. The first woman to be acknowledged by the New Zealand Women in Wine initiative began a life in wine by accident in the 1970’s when she visited a friend in South Australia on a working holiday. Little did she know what her career future would hold, or that it would involve the wine industry for more than 40 years. Aged 22, Heather secured a job at Angle Vale Vineyards north of Adelaide. Leaving when the business relocated to Sydney a couple of years later, she was successful in obtaining a job with Penfolds Wines Australia. Working for the legendary Grange winemaker and Director, Max Schubert, Heather discovered, among other things, old Penfolds reds. When she decided to return to New Zealand, she went to visit Frank Yukich at Penfolds, Henderson, and within 2 weeks she started work for him on her 26th birthday. This is where her life
changed again - she met future husband Paddy who joined the company in March 1980. Vintage parties were quite something in those days – eight weeks later Paddy and Heather were married, much to the surprise of family, friends, and colleagues. After a break of several years to be at home with her young family, Heather was keen to return to work and hoped she could stay in the wine industry, to do something she loved, and locally. Part time at first, Heather went to work for Jim and Rose Delegat at their Henderson winery – it was to be the most rewarding and gratifying position of her career. After 12 years as Jim’s PA, Heather felt the time had come to do something different in her career. She sensed an upcoming shortage of good winery and vineyard workers to support the rapid growth and increased vineyard plantings going mad at the time and had the idea of an online service to connect employers and employees with
jobs – a little ahead of its time. In 2004, Paddy and Heather launched winejobsonline.com as an employment service to the New Zealand wine industry. The industry and its people supported the venture from day one, and after nearly 13 years of successful operation and service, they sold winejobsonline last year. It was quite an achievement,
launching something completely new in New Zealand for the wine industry - it was her life, her livelihood and passion, and provided a great sense of personal pride to be able to assist with the staffing issues that wineries and vineyards face. Heather was a fierce and loyal supporter of the New Zealand wine industry for 38 years, personally and through business.T
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NEW ZEALAND:
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NZ WINEGROWER FEBRUARY/MARCH 2018 // 53