Margaret knows about hardship and watching pennies from her dairy farming days and being a single parent to three daughters.
"I had the empathy and the understanding but in saying that we don't just serve beneficiaries, we serve wage earners as well.
"People do make that assumption and that has been one of the challenges but we are out there advocating for women, families, senior single men ... everyone."
Margaret is retiring after 20 years with budget services.
She started as a volunteer in Matamata in 2001 after leaving nursing for health reasons. Within six months she was the manager. She's worked her way up from Thames-Coromandel district representative, Midland regional representative, vice president to president for five years.
The biggest challenge for people is to walk through budget services door, she says.
"To walk through the door and talk about your finances is a big thing."
But the end result has been the most rewarding part.
"Seeing that smile on the client's face. It can be 2-3 years later someone might come back and say 'I have a mortgage now, or I have that car'.
"It's hard to see people go through what they have had to go through but it has been very rewarding as well."
Sometimes it's not always about the money, she says.
"It could be that they just want to talk and they just off-load. Sometimes its our counselling skills and life skills that help the client."
She has worked a further five years past retirement age.
"It was hard to give up a business I had put so much of myself into. I also wanted to leave with experienced staff to carry it forward."
Margaret has handed the keys over to her daughter Annette Reddick, who takes over as branch manager.
"It's the end of an era. I have enjoyed it, it's been rewarding in so many ways. But it's time."
