COMMUNITY GEM: Lois Whiting

For as long as she can remember, Lois Whiting has had a passion for flowers.
She nurtures the seeds, waters them daily, clears the weeds and watches them grow. She gets great satisfaction from seeing the seeds turn into beautiful plants.
But most of all, Mrs Whiting loves the way flowers bring happiness to people.
Mrs Whiting, 77, was born in Pongakawa and moved to Tauranga when she was 5. She entertained herself with the company of her five siblings and found her calling when she was only 10.
Her father was a keen gardener and she inherited his passion for nature. As a child, she even had her own flower garden.
"During the war, we spent 18 months at the Mount. I was 10, there was a competition and we had to grow a flower garden," Mrs Whiting said. "I won that and I guess it really started from there. I enjoy making things grow and I love the challenge of seeing if I can get something to grow."
Her involvement with flowers had grown from from a passion into a career. In the past 40 years, Mrs Whiting opened three florists, Greerton Florists, Southerland Florists and Bouquet Florists. For one year, she operated all three stores.
"It wasn't hard because I loved it. I couldn't imagine doing anything else."
During this time, Mrs Whiting was approached to join the Tauranga Soroptimist Club - a service club for women, similar to Rotary. She was the charter president of Soroptimist International, Tauranga Branch, formed in 1973.
For many years, she was also heavily involved in the Tauranga A&P show. She volunteered as the event secretary for 20 years - a position she maintained until about five years ago.
Her dedication to community service did not end there.
In early 2000, Mrs Whiting's late husband, Malcolm, was approached to become a member of the Pakeke Lions Club. He joined the club and Mrs Whiting became an associate member. When her husband died three years ago, Mrs Whiting continued with the club and soon became president - a role she "kind of fell into". She was the first female president in 28 years.
"I don't really know how or why I got into it, I just did and I love it," she said.
Mrs Whiting is also a member of a Probus club, which she said was her social outlet.
For the past five years, she has been an integral volunteer for the Tauranga Red Rose Day, an annual fundraiser hosted by New Zealand Red Cross.
Mrs Whiting said she was a little apprehensive about getting involved with Red Cross because she "didn't like medical things" but when Red Rose Day came around, she jumped at the opportunity.
Mrs Whiting de-thorns roses, makes bouquets, provides floral material and helps distribute the roses on Red Rose Day on the street and at supermarket stalls.
She and other volunteers had to de-thorn and wrap more than 7000 roses for this year's Red Rose Day, which was celebrated on Friday.
"The red rose is for love and it's a fundraiser for us."
Heather Dabrowski, from the New Zealand Red Cross, nominated Mrs Whiting and said she was "well and truly deserving of the title Community Gem".
"She is an incredibly hard worker, has a tremendous sense of humour and a heart of gold. She has a wealth of knowledge and a very positive and involved sense of community service."
Mrs Whiting was awarded a Queen's Service Medal in 1996 for her dedication to community service.
Being involved in many service activities is time-consuming but for Mrs Whiting, it's her way of relaxing.
"I do get exhausted at times but I want to continue on doing it for awhile."
"The rewards you get are the friendships you make ... and I like doing things, I need to be active," she said.
And being out in the garden was rewarding and therapeutic.
"I'm not a cook or housemaid and you will be able to see dust on the windowsill, I'm a gardener and I love it," she said.
"I feel very sorry for the people that are unwell and don't have anything to do. My advice to people, is to get out and join something. Don't sit at home and stagnate."
RECOGNITION
Do you know a potential Community Gem? If you know someone who is worthy of recognition, email news@bayofplentytimes.co.nz