More Info →'Mum' Says Goodbye

This photograph ran in the Manawatu Evening Standard on 2, April 1988 with the caption, "Two-year-old Christina Koot has a final cuddle with adoptive mother Bertha Zurcher." Bertha Zurcher worked in Wellington Hospital during World War Two. After the war's end, she became an almoner (medical social worker) in Palmerston North Hospital. After retirement, she began volunteering as a home-support worker with the Methodist Support Services, helping struggling families navigate difficult times. She died January 2 2014 at the age of 101. For more information, see Manawatu Evening Standard 28 September, 2005 (p2).