Dennis Pezaro
Topics: Medical advancements, regional development, Wānaka Concert Society
Dr Dennis Pezaro was proud to be a “Country General Practitioner”. He was Wānaka’s sole GP from 1973 for many years and served a permanent population of 800 that swelled to 5-10,000 in summer.
In the following excerpts from conversations recorded in 2023, Dennis Pezaro covers a wide range of subjects including what it was like to be the sole GP, and then what it was like when others joined the Practice; the need for innovation in his practice - whether performing a surgical procedure on Mt Aspiring homestead’s dining table or standing on the skids of a helicopter to attend an emergency, and the experience of establishing early medical services for Cardrona and Treble Cone ski fields. He was the kind of GP who gave his patients attention and was well known for his lack of timekeeping and always running late.
Dennis also talks about his time as the Chair of the NZ Medical Association; as a writer of “My View” articles for the Otago Daily Times, and how he and Olwyn assisted in the purchase of a Steinway Piano for the Wānaka Concert Society as well as many more topics.
Dr Dennis Pezaro died in November 2025.
Interviewed by Liz Holland
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