John Veale closed his optometry business in Shirley on Friday but the 74-year-old will not lose sight of a profession he has been devoted to since abandoning plans to be a tradesman at his father’s insistence.

Sarah Pallett opens up about beating cancer and then Gerry Brownlee on her way to winning the Ilam electorate race.

Mark Brown never quite made the step up to provincial rugby amid stiff competition for a start in Otago’s formidable loose forward trio in the 1990s - so he switched focus to helping other talented players reach the top.

Lee Barraclough talks about his business Skydiving Kiwis, which is set to launch a new attraction soon that will see people skydive out of a helicopter onto Sumner Beach.

David Harvey served for 40 years in the police, retiring in 2017, and has now been made a member of the New Zealand Order of Merit. The former detective senior sergeant spoke to Matt Slaughter.

Anne Richardson has been protecting and breeding native flora and fauna at the Isaac Conservation and Wildlife Trust in Canterbury for 28 years.