Jeanette

My heart is very heavy today as I read the news of Jeanette’s passing. My deepest love to Harry and all of Jeanette’s whanau. Thank you for sharing her with us all.

Jeanette was an extraordinary part of my life. As a young Green activist I was enthusiastically bouncy and idealistic. Traits that she never once scoffed at, like many do. Rather she nurtured and guided. Because Jeanette understood better than anyone how critically important it is that we engage and value young people within our political system. If I ever asked her to do something related to young people, the answer was always yes.

I will always remember Jeanette for her incredible intellect. Her technical knowledge and understanding was one of the greatest strengths the early Green movement had. No one could sit in a room with Jeanette and accuse the Greens of not understanding science. In fact it was Jeanette’s knowledge that led to the party being so active on issues like GM. In particular, it was her ability to understand complex whole systems and their relationships with each other that made her such an important and influential policy maker.

Jeanette redefined what strong political leadership looked like. Parliament is renowned for it’s toxic, juvenile, bullying, masculine culture. Jeanette was having none of that. She was a true matriarch. She completely embodied the mana of a senior woman. She was gentle, kind and gracious. But she was also strong, wise and direct. She didn’t suffer any fools and if you said something unwise, she always let you know what she thought. She was known as parliament’s grandmother. But not that sweet, helpless, doddery version of a grandmother that popular culture likes to portray. No, she was the nan that everybody loved but also quietly feared. You never saw her cross, but you also knew that you never wanted to disappoint her.

One of my favourite memories of Jeanette was finding her on her nightly prowl around the parliamentary office checking everyone’s switches. If you were foolish enough to leave a light on, you would arrive at work in the morning with a post it note on your light switch or printer reminding you to check it that night. I remember hearing her muttering as she did her rounds that she didn’t spend months of her life busting her guts to get the Energy Efficiency and Conservation Act passed just so people could leave their lights on. It certainly worked. Before the rest of the world was catching up to turning lights off when you left the room, you could stand outside Bowen House at night and see where the Green Party offices were because they were the only two floors with no lights on. Although Jeanette’s was probably still on, because she was still working.

What I will remember most about Jeanette was her wonderful eyes. So full of sparkle and mischief and kindness, but never scorn. If the eyes are the window to the soul, her eyes were a beautiful stained glass window made of brilliant love and hope.

It seems fitting that Jeanette died so close to International Women’s Day. We can all take this day to remember and appreciate what a gift Jeanette was to us all. But we can also take great lessons from her leadership and let her life guide as all as we take on humanity’s great challenges.

Jeanette leaves behind a movement for good. Her legacy will indeed stretch across the world and across generations. While she will be sorely missed, I know that there are hundreds of activists today mourning her loss, but at the same time consciously taking on her determination to speak truth to power.

I count myself among them.

Farewell Jeanette

Moe mai ra e whaea

Rayna Fahey
Former Green Party staff member and Young Greens Convenor