Lesley Frances Elliott ( Scott; 27 October 1946 – 20 November 2022) was a New Zealand nurse and the founder and chairperson of the Sophie Elliott Foundation, an organisation that educated New Zealanders on the signs of abuse in personal relationships. She was moved to start the work after her daughter

Sophie Sophie is a version of the female given name Sophia, meaning "wise". People with the name Born in the Middle Ages * Sophie, Countess of Bar (c. 1004 or 1018–1093), sovereign Countess of Bar and lady of Mousson * Sophie of Thuringia, Duchess o ...

was killed by her former boyfriend in January 2008. She realised that she had been unaware that he was abusive, but that it was possible to identify the signs. In 2019, she closed the Sophie Elliott Foundation as her

Parkinson's disease Parkinson's disease (PD), or simply Parkinson's, is a long-term degenerative disorder of the central nervous system that mainly affects the motor system. The symptoms usually emerge slowly, and as the disease worsens, non-motor symptoms becom ...

was preventing her from continuing to run the foundation and she did not want another person to control her daughter's image.

Biography

Born Lesley Frances Scott in

Invercargill Invercargill ( , mi, Waihōpai is the southernmost and westernmost city in New Zealand, and one of the southernmost cities in the world. It is the commercial centre of the Southland region. The city lies in the heart of the wide expanse of t ...

on 27 October 1946, Elliott was the daughter of Eric Prior Scott and Audrey Victoria Scott (née Green). She became engaged to Gilbert Stanley Elliott in 1966, and they married at St Mary's Anglican Church in

New Plymouth New Plymouth ( mi, Ngāmotu) is the major city of the Taranaki region on the west coast of the North Island of New Zealand. It is named after the English city of Plymouth, Devon from where the first English settlers to New Plymouth migrated. ...

in 1968. The couple went on to have two sons as well as their daughter Sophie. Towards the end of her life, Elliott suffered from Parkinson's disease and dementia, and she died in

Dunedin Dunedin ( ; mi, Ōtepoti) is the second-largest city in the South Island of New Zealand (after Christchurch), and the principal city of the Otago region. Its name comes from , the Scottish Gaelic name for Edinburgh, the capital of Scotland. Th ...

on 20 November 2022, aged 76.

Recognition

In 2014, Elliott won the Supreme Award at the New Zealand Women of Influence Awards. She also won a Paul Harris Fellowship from

Rotary International Rotary International is one of the largest service organizations in the world. Its stated mission is to "provide service to others, promote integrity, and advance world understanding, goodwill, and peace through hefellowship of business, prof ...

and the ''Next'' Woman of the Year title. In the

2015 Queen's Birthday Honours The 2015 Queen's Birthday Honours are appointments by some of the 16 Commonwealth realms of Queen Elizabeth II to various orders and honours to reward and highlight good works by citizens of those countries. The Birthday Honours are awarded as p ...

, she was appointed a

Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit The New Zealand Order of Merit is an order of merit in the New Zealand royal honours system. It was established by royal warrant on 30 May 1996 by Elizabeth II, Queen of New Zealand, "for those persons who in any field of endeavour, have ren ...

, for services to the prevention of domestic violence.

Publications

* ''Sophie's Legacy – A mother's story of her family's loss and their quest for change'', (2011) Lesley Elliott with William J O'Brien, Random House * ''Loves Me Not - How to Keep Relationships Safe,'' (2014) Lesley Elliott with William J O'Brien, Random House

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Elliott, Lesley 1946 births 2022 deaths Health professionals from Dunedin New Zealand Women of Influence Award recipients Members of the New Zealand Order of Merit New Zealand non-fiction writers 21st-century New Zealand writers 21st-century New Zealand women writers New Zealand nurses Deaths from Parkinson's disease Deaths from dementia in New Zealand