Lesley Elliott Obituary, Death – Lesley Elliott, Dunedin domestic violence campaigner has died on Sunday, November 20, 2022, at the age of 76. Lesley was a New Zealand nurse and the founder of the Sophie Elliott Foundation. Lesley has been a vocal advocate for increasing awareness about domestic violence ever since her daughter Sophie Elliott, who was 22 years old at the time of her death, was killed by her ex-boyfriend in 2008. Sophie Elliott was a student at the time of her death.
Lesley made the decision to establish the foundation in order to educate people about the warning signs of abuse in the home after the tragic loss of her daughter. Her goal is to prevent future tragedies like the one she experienced. She traveled throughout New Zealand and gave presentations at a variety of schools and community organizations. She had Parkinson’s disease, which made it impossible for her to continue running the organization, and she did not want another person to have control over her daughter’s reputation, so she made the decision to shut down the Sophie Elliott Foundation in 2019.
Lesley was the name given to Elliott when she was born around the year 1946. Her father, E. P. Scott, was originally from Oamaru. In 1966, she made public her intention to marry Gilbert Stanley Scott, and in 1968, the happy couple tied the knot at St. Mary’s Anglican Church in New Plymouth. The announcement of her engagement took place in 1966. After getting married, the couple went on to have two sons, and then later on, they also welcomed a daughter into the world named Sophie. In 2014, Elliott was honored at the New Zealand Women of Influence Awards by receiving the Supreme Award, which she had previously won.
In addition to that, she was awarded the Paul Harris Fellowship from Rotary International as well as the title of Next Woman of the Year. She was recognized in the Queen’s Birthday Honours in 2015 as a Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit for her contributions to the fight against domestic violence and was given the honor in recognition of her work. This accolade was bestowed upon her in acknowledgement of the work that she has done. She wrote two books on the topic, Sophie’s Legacy and Loves Me Not: How to Keep Relationships Safe, and she gave away tens of thousands of copies of each book to different organizations. Her books are called Sophie’s Legacy and Loves Me Not: How to Keep Relationships Safe.
