Sandra Dunning, of Pukekohe, died after a fire tore through her home in Victoria St, South Auckland.
Twenty-two firefighters were called to the blaze and managed to prevent it spreading to neighbouring properties.
The blaze took half an hour to get under control and crews spent the rest of the night dampening down any hotspots.
Her son and Dunedin resident Scott Dunning described his mother as a woman with "no filter and all heart".
"She very much lived by her values and her values were very much focused on people and caring for people."
Ms Dunning, 62, and her grandchildren had a trip booked for January 24 to see her son in Dunedin.
"We were really looking forward to having her down here.
"She had been sending me TradeMe links of houses she likes ... the next minute, I would be receiving calls from Dunedin real estate agents who would be saying ‘Oh, your mum’s just called. When would you like to view the house?"’
She was a big fan of op shops. Mr Dunning and his partner had already mapped out a route of Dunedin city to take her so they could visit as many second-hand stores as possible.
"She really wanted to hit every op shop in the city — she wanted to see the castle, the gardens, the sea lions and we were always hoping she would make the move down to be here with us."
Mr Dunning was involved with many causes around the city such as Students For Sensible Drug Policy Dunedin.
He said his mother was the inspiration behind all of his work.
"I inherited my passion for the community from her — all the effort I put in for the Otago students, I learnt it from my mum."
Ms Dunning was a keen volunteer at the Pukekohe IHC for over a decade.
Mr Dunning set up a Givealittle page in honour of his mother as "a last good deed" to celebrate her lifetime commitment of caring for others.
All the money raised would be going to IHC, Women’s Refuge, and Sands NZ.
