Shortly after Shrek's death last June, his minder and owner John Perriam and Cure Kids fundraising and business development director Josie Spillane began discussing with Te Papa the possibility of the famous sheep being displayed there, after a flood of correspondence from well-wishers.
Since then, Queenstown taxidermist David Jacobs has been the guardian of Shrek, who raised more than $200,000 for Cure Kids after being thrust into the spotlight in 2004 for evading muster and shearing for six years.
Mrs Spillane said there had been a delay in Shrek reaching his final resting place at Te Papa because Mr Jacobs had relocated his business from Christchurch after the earthquakes, which had put him "considerably behind" in dealing with his orders.
"Shrek's not going anywhere, obviously, so we're still on track for him to be unveiled probably in the last quarter of the year at Te Papa," Mrs Spillane said.
Although the museum mounting was dependent on whether Shrek could be fully restored "to his former glory", Mr Jacobs was "one of the best in the business, so if anyone can do it he can".
Despite nearly 12 months passing since his death, Shrek was still "in the forefront of everyone's minds", she said.
"Every two weeks someone will still ask me about Shrek, be it another media organisation or a member of the public.
"We're still talking about his support in all of our Cure Kids presentations ... I guess it's just something that helps people remember us and who we are," she said.
"Even in death he continues to raise money for us.
"John Perriam's books are still great sellers and we receive all the royalties from that ... His legacy definitely lives on."
Close to 700 stories had been written worldwide about Shrek's death, and "at least once a month there's a story that pops up internationally that has a reference to Shrek".
When Shrek was eventually unveiled in Wellington, she and Mr Perriam would be "getting together to enjoy a pinot and remember 'his nibs', as John affectionately referred to him", Mrs Spillane said.
