Min Tobenhouse wins Good Deed Award for her selfless contributions to forestry

Min Tobenhouse receives the Good Deed Award from Joe Akari of award sponsor Safetree at the 2024 Central North Island Wood Council Forestry Awards.

South Waikato’s Mereana “Min” Tobenhouse of Fast Harvesting Ltd won the Good Deed Award last month at the 2024 Central North Island Wood Council Forestry Awards at the Energy Events Centre in Rotorua.

Fast Group’s Smiley and Ange Alexander describe Min as the company’s “Swiss Army Knife”.

“Our health & safety co-ordinator come fill-in machine operator when needed and she has many other talents,” Ange said.

“But over and above her actual role, Min is a committed and trusted member of the team who has everyone’s wellbeing at the forefront of her mind.

“We are very privileged to have Min on the team. She is such an asset who is not only very passionate, capable and reliable, she is always willing to take on new challenges within the industry and is flexible and very loyal.”

Recently, a fire destroyed the garage on a property of Fast Group employee Lorraine Uatuku, including all the contents stored in the building.

Min took it upon herself and rallied a working bee that dismantled, cleaned up and removed the building then set up a koha fund to replace all the lost possessions.

Min is a positive and passionate soul, her peers value her work ethic and her generosity with her time is always there to provide advice and training as well as jumping in to operate machines.

She sits on two sub-committees alongside forestry partners and is a trained safety aider to support mental health.

She is always the first person to put her hand up and initiate Fast Group participation in national campaigns.

Min Tobenhouse of Fast Harvesting Limited.

Her attributes and learned skills give her the empathy to look out for her workmates and the wider Tokoroa community.

Min is enthusiastic and passionate about the forestry sector, and this is credit to the person she is and her selfless acts of giving back are commendable.

Min previously won the Female in Forestry Award in 2022.

The South Waikato Investment Fund Trust (SWIFT) and South Waikato District Council fund The Generation Programme, supported by the Central North Island Wood Council.

This programme is a training pathway for young people leading to local employment opportunities in the forestry sector.

The latest 15-week programme kicked off in Tokoroa on August 5 and someone on that programme could emulate Min’s achievements in years to come.