Community
8 August, 2026
‘Strong, stubborn, funny and fiercely intelligent’: media personality loses her Southern Highlands mum
Much-loved Australian media personality Deborah Hutton is grieving the loss of her mother, Southern Highlands resident Dellmai Joan Dempster.
Much-loved Australian media personality Deborah Hutton is grieving the loss of her mother, Southern Highlands resident Dellmai Joan Dempster.
Hutton described her mum – a passionate Sydney Swans supporter – as a woman who was loved by many.
She said her mother was “strong, stubborn, funny and fiercely intelligent” and someone who had always been “completely her own person”.
“She was unafraid to take on a worthy cause and fight for what she believed in,” Hutton said.
She founded the Southern Highlands Railway Users Group (SHRUG) after moving to the region decades ago, successfully campaigning to make country/city train connections easier for elderly passengers and those people travelling with luggage.
She was treasurer of the Mittagong Chamber of Commerce for many years and became a respected business and community figure.
She received a Regional Award from Governor Marie Bashir for her contribution to the community.
She was also a computer software pioneer specialising in the legal profession.
“Mum gathered people wherever she went – over shared meals, laughter and usually a glass of red,” Hutton said.
She said her mum accepted her last few days with grace and dignity.
Hutton said her mother’s ashes would be scattered at Lake Alexandra in Mittagong.
Never one to fuss, she said her mother’s wishes had been pure and simple: “Scatter my ashes on the lake and simply have a piss up in the park”.
Literally hundreds of people have taken to Facebook to share their memories of Dellmai.
One described her a “gentle, yet strong woman with great determination and grit”.
Another said her passing had left a “huge hole in humanity”.
“There are very few people like Dell in this world unfortunately.”
Former Wingecarribee Shire Deputy Mayor Ian Scandrett who worked alongside Dellmai in several community endeavours told The Southern Wire “Dell was community”.
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