When Alisha Osborne sang her heart-rending version of the hit song Angel for New Zealand’s Got Talent, there was only one person not brought to tears, and that was Alisha herself.
Everyone else who witnessed her performance of the Sarah McLachlan song in memory of her dad Milton, who died in the Pike River Mine explosion, was visibly moved by her touching tribute. But Alisha admits she had to push thoughts of her father from her mind, as that was the only way she could get through the round without breaking down. “I couldn’t think about Dad,” says the Greymouth teenager. “If I had, I would have been a mess the whole way through.”
Her mum Anna, who was watching from the wings, couldn’t help bursting into tears as Alisha (15) sang the lyrics “in the arms of an angel”. “It’s hard for me, hearing that song and knowing she wants her dad to be in the arms of an angel,” says Anna, a part-time teacher aide and school bus driver. “I just couldn’t stop shaking and crying. They were tears of pride and joy, but they were also tears of sorrow because her dad wasn’t there to hear her. He would have been so proud.”
Alisha and mum Anna have supported each other through their grief over losing Milton under such tragic circumstances
Alisha laughs as she says, “Dad was always proud. I could have done the worst audition in the world and he’d have given me the thumbs up.” She certainly got the thumbs up from judges Jason Kerrison, Rachel Hunter and Ali Campbell, and a standing ovation from the supportive audience.
Although she got three yes votes from the judges, Alisha wasn’t happy with her vocal performance. She’d been sick the week before and was still getting over a blocked nose and sore throat. Meanwhile, problems with her backing track meant it had to be changed at the last moment and the new one had a different pitch, tempo and speed.
“I don’t think I performed to the best of my vocal ability,” says the high school student. Alisha wants to be a social worker, not a singer, but she couldn’t resist trying out for New Zealand’s Got Talent. She wanted to perform in memory of her dad, who used to sing with her at home.
Although she got three yes votes from the judges, Alisha wasn’t happy with her vocal performance on \’New Zealand\’s Got Talent\’
Anna explains, “He spent a lot of time with our son, Robin, hunting, fishing and doing boy things, and he wanted to spend more time with Alisha doing something they both enjoyed and he came up with singing. They would sit there together at home and sing their hearts out.”
They shared a fondness for old country music songs – Jim Reeves was a particular favourite – and Milton would look up numbers on the internet. “He’d get on YouTube a couple of times a week and say, ‘Right, let’s try this one’,” recalls Alisha. “And we would just sing along. He had a good voice.”
Milton was a contractor who was working at Pike River laying pipes and was only due to be there for a couple more weeks before moving to another mine. He shouldn’t have been at work on November 19, 2010, the day of the explosion, but there was so much work to be done he went up to Pike River.
Milton was a hands-on dad who loved spending time with his daughter Alisha and her brother Robin
It has been nearly two years since Milton (54) and 28 other men died in the blast, but Anna (46) says she still finds it hard to believe he is not coming home. “I wish I could turn back time and have one more cuddle with him,” she says. “I love him so much. A few days before the explosion we were having a cuddle and he said, ‘I love you, I love you so much.’ It was so lovely to hear that and then a few days later he was gone.”
Anna admits she’s struggling with her grief, but her kids have been very strong. “I’m very blessed to have wonderful kids. And Alisha, despite being so young still and missing her dad so much, has been my rock through this whole thing.”
