06/08/2025
Home is where the heart is
Marlborough Mayor Nadine Taylor is standing for re-election in the upcoming council elections. She talks to Paula Hulburt about her passion for community, family and frozen pea conversations.
The bus doors open into the heavy heat of the late summer afternoon. Neatly pressed uniforms bear the day’s smudges and as the girls alight, open-toed sandals hitting the ground with glee. School bags slung around shoulders, chatter and giggles greet the parent on carpool duty.
It is 4.30pm and 16-year-old Nadine Taylor is dropped off a few kilometres from the bus stop where her bicycle waits. She gets out and waves goodbye, ready for the 10-minute cycle to the family's farm further up Seddon's Marama Road. Ten hours after she left that morning, she is almost home again.
Perhaps, Nadine smiles, that was her preparation for the long days that awaited as mayor. "I went to Seddon School and then later took the bus to Marlborough Girls' College. In the sun and in the cold we'd trundle. It was long hours from the start."
Poised and with a gentle friendliness that should somehow belie her role it is something of a leap of imagination to picture Marlborough's Mayor as the once shy, hesitant girl she explains she once was.
The youngest of three siblings, Nadine's days were always busy: with family, the farm, friends, pets and the countless books she easily devoured. The heady days of childhood are happily remembered.
Her younger brother and sister both live in Blenheim now while Nadine calls Picton home. The trio remains close. “I won’t name them,” she smiles, “they probably don’t want the world to know I’m their sister,” she jokes. “We’ll keep their anonymity.”
It was at Marlborough Girls' College where she flourished, a world of possibilities opening as she found confidence. “It was where I came out of my shell and opened to the opportunities of tertiary education,” she recollects. “I have a lot to thank the college for, it's where I found my tribe, my own people. I also joined drama and that's a great way to build confidence and was the beginning of finding my voice."
Finding that voice took Nadine to Canterbury University where she studied history and political science. "I always had a fascination for politics," Nadine says, "and beyond that, the impact of policy and decision making on a community. I knew if it was done well, it would enhance lives."
This passion for community stems from family; her aunts, uncles and parents who volunteered their time. "They understood it takes everyone to stand up and make a community stronger." Nadine says.
It is community at the heart of her decision to stand again she reveals.
“The first few years have been fascinating and opened a whole lot of possibilities. There is no natural end time in this job,” Nadine says, “progress is constant.”
“You couldn’t have just anyone jump into this role; you’d need at least a term as a councillor. I was also deputy mayor for John Leggett who was very good to me as a mentor and encouraging me to take the lead in issues.”
Support has been key to her political role, Nadine says, “it’s not a job someone could tackle alone. I’ve great family support, we’re really close and always have been.” This closeness came at a cost just over a year ago when Nadine’s much-loved father died following a terminal illness diagnosis. The family, she says, cared for him at home.
Both her parents were proud of what she has achieved, she says as are her two grown sons. ‘They’ll send me headlines and ask what I think,” she smiles.
It is her husband of 31-years, Graham who she credits as being her “greatest support.” The pair met in Japan where they were both spending winter
working on the ski fields.
An advert in the then Marlborough Express saw a few people from across the region take seasonal jobs there, Nadine says. “We didn’t know each other before that. He grew up in Blenheim and went to Marlborough Boys’ College. Our lives really are immersed in this region.”
Here, Nadine pauses for a moment, her tone softening just slightly. “We fell in love and we came back. I was going to do some more travelling, but he was way too special not to come back for.
“I’d do it all again in a heartbeat, he was the best decision I’ve made.
“I owe him a lot for helping create the space in our life so I can focus on the job of being Mayor, I know he misses out on a lot and has to listen to far too much local government talk that is probably good for any marriage!”
For Nadine, local government is a passion. Being part of and caring for the community is more than simply a job. When she’s not in Wellington talking to officials and politicians, representing Marlborough at events, at council or welcoming foreign dignitaries to the region, even her down time can turn political.
“I’ve had quite a few of what I call ‘frozen pea’ conversations where I get stopped in the supermarket,” she laughs. “But connection is a big part of the role, and in Marlborough those connections come in the way we rally to support each other, and we need to protect that.”
Her biggest challenge as mayor is without doubt the two major weather events of 2021 and 2022 which closed roads, disrupted lives and isolated communities in the Sounds, she explains.
“There so many times I just wished there was a quicker way forward,” Nadine says. The June rains this year closed 40 roads and caused an estimated $20 million of damages. Dealing with more extreme weather events is very much on her mind.
“We have to think how we move forward, how will we manage the new normal of extreme rain and weather as a community?”
Bringing in the Sounds’ road repairs on time and under budget is an achievement she is proud of. The library is another. There are many micro-moments of magic, she says, grateful for all the role of mayor brings. “I do have many moments where I think ‘gosh, this it, this is why I do the job, this is why I’m here.
“I value the space we live in; we have everything, from the sense of safety and access to some amazing facilities, the library, the stadium, our parks and open spaces, the hospital, our port and airport.
“I am proud to call Marlborough home.”
