"She still runs the place, even though she’s not here," daughter Bridget Becker says.
Ms Becker has run Naseby’s only cafe with her partner Dean McAuley since mid-December. It was bought by her mother in 2006, but had been mostly closed since September 2015 when she became ill, only briefly reopening last summer.
Ms Becker said her mother wanted her to take it over and they thought they would "give it a go".
"It’s been hard work. We’re really just finding our feet, and it’s the busiest time of year."
Naseby "boomed" in summer, but the two expected it to be quieter as the year went on.
"When snow came there were a lot of people hiding in here, because it’s the only cafe in town."
Ms Becker grew up in Patearoa, and Mr McAuley in Ranfurly, but the two have lived near Melbourne for the past 13 years.
He was a chef with produce sales experience, but it was an almost completely new venture.
Ms Becker said the support of their families was essential.
"We have two small kids, so we wouldn’t be able to do it without people babysitting and helping out."
They also had a great reception from Naseby and Maniototo residents, she said.
"We get visitors but also a lot of locals. People coming in and saying, ‘I knew you when you were little’, yeah I’ve had a bit of that."
Ms Becker followed in the family sport of curling, but with busy trading, she barely had the chance to visit the Naseby rink.
She would often visit the town growing up.
"It’s beautiful, how could you not love it?"
The building, which once held up to five separate businesses, was turned into a cafe in 2002 by local Jan Rutherford who ran it as the Cottage Garden Cafe for four years.
It had housed a hairdresser, dairy, baker and bank, among many other businesses.
Naseby Vision chairman John Crawford said the cafe’s reopening added a bit more life into the town.
"It was missed. It was a bit of a meeting place in the town. It’s great to have the Becker family still involved."
