Several decades of work in the community have been recognised for Northland regional councillor and former Whangarei mayor Craig Brown, who today becomes a Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit in the New Year Honours list.
For Mr Brown the accolade is as much for the many other people he has worked with - "the ones who help you do what you do" - and particularly for his supportive wife Helen, who "lets me do the things I do".
But despite the numerous community groups and causes he's been involved with the "rural resident" credits support from city folk in voting him in as Whangarei mayor twice as possibly his proudest achievement. "Coming out of the blue and getting the job as mayor was very interesting. It's normally the big towns that provide the mayor, yet I came from a country location and made mayor, that showed that I was also getting support from the people in the city who felt I could do the job," he said.
Mr Brown served 12 years on Whangarei District Council and was mayor for six from 1998. He has served four terms since 2004 on the NRC, including three years as chairman. He has been a member of the Northland District Health Board since 2004.
"I've had the good fortune to have been able to stand for office and - I don't know whether it's been good fortune or common sense - to determine when it's time for my term to finish," he said.
