Honouring Tui's legacy 'HER SPIRIT LIVES ON'

Foodie and friend Robyn's making her late mentor proud

- Donna Fleming

'It's seven years since iconic Weekly food editor Tui Flower passed away, but her protégé and close friend Robyn Martin can still hear her mentor's voice loud and clear, giving instructions about her legacy.

"For many years before she died, she would say, 'Now, Robyn, you know what I want, don't you?' And I'd always say, 'Yes, Tui, I know," recalls Robyn. "I can still hear her now. It's like she's sitting on my shoulder."

What Tui wanted was for money from her estate to go towards supporting what she called the "household arts" - cooking, nutrition, sewing, budgeting and growing food after her death and she asked Robyn to help make that dream come true.

Robyn, who followed in Tui's footsteps to become food editor at the Weekly, is one of the advisory trustees of the Tui Flower Foundation and is delighted to be playing her part in carrying out her mentor's wishes. "The foundation provides funding for community-run projects throughout New Zealand whose work supports the healthy functioning of the home and family,” explains Robyn. “Being able to do this meant a lot to Tui.”

Tui, who died in 2017, aged 91, taught several generations of Kiwis to cook. As the food editor of the