RIP the ‘indefatigable’ Margaret
Margaret Williams, a member of a number of Horowhenua community organisations, died peacefully on November 3 in Lonsdale Home, Foxton.
She was an indefatigable member of many community groups; Levin Garden Club, Grey Power and its committee, which she represented on the Health Committee and the Older Person’s network. A supporter of Age Concern Horowhenua, she sat on the HDC’s Access and Inclusion Committee, regularly attending council public meetings.
She was also part of the MidCentral Health Community Consultation meetings held in Palmerston North.
She was always advocating on behalf of others on transport, health and support of the older person. She, along with Lew Rohloff, past president of HGP, was largely responsible, through Horizons Regional Council, for the weekly off peak bus services to Waikanae and Palmerston North, primarily because, as a non-driver, she realised the importance of being able to get places by public transport. Her love of books and reading meant she joined Friends of the Library as well.
In 2017 the Horowhenua District Council awarded her a Certificate of Recognition for her diligence and advocacy.
She called a spade a spade, and wasn’t afraid to disagree with people, but then said ‘but we are friends aren’t we?’ She had like-minded friends from all walks of life, and was always on the side of doing the right things for people rather than limiting options to please. She wouldn’t take no for an answer as she always looked for a good outcome. She was part of the Locality Planning group at MidCentral DHB where she could be quite acerbic and even manipulative, in a nice way, to get what she wanted. Her “business strategy” was to set goals and then decide who was the best person to meet them.
Originally from the UK, Margaret lived in Wellington, working at Philips Electrical but she had also worked for a book publisher in UK, so she was a stickler for using correct English and often proof-read newsletters etc, decrying the poor standards of today. While in the UK, she was a member of the Board of Diabetes UK. She took up a position on the committee of the Horowhenua branch of Diabetes NZ, taking great interest in all information that was offered. Her knowledgeable input was very much appreciated. An inveterate letter writer, she kept in touch with family and friends round the world, and in her community work she strongly despaired the encroaching digital invasion, demanding always paper copies of newsletters, minutes, agendas (and telephone bills!) which, in later years, she struggled to read due to macular degeneration. This was another local group to which she belonged. As she aged and her eyesight deteriorated, she realised the need to investigate her family history for her children. She persuaded a genealogy friend to get involved and was subsequently amazed at the tangled web of information found in the past, about which she knew little.
For those into family history, brick walls abound, some because family don’t talk. This was definitely the case with Margaret’s earlier generations.
She was a caring ear, concerned about and for others, spending hours during covid, ringing many Grey Power members living on their own in order to provide a listening ear and allay loneliness.
Resilient, persistent, charming — Margaret was much loved as a ‘motherly’ person by her close friends and is already deeply missed by many. Margaret is survived by daughter Susan, son David (UK) and grandson Tom (UK).