"I want to make a positive contribution to our community."
There was a strong family connection to the town he had grown up in. His father Trevor, 84, still lives in Foxton, as does his son Trevor and grandson Trevor - four generations of Trevor Chambers.
Though he had different jobs throughout his life after leaving school at a young age - jockey, builder, factory worker, business owner - he always had a racehorse in a paddock next to the house.
Thoroughbred horse racing was an industry where horses are sometimes traded for millions of dollars. Chambers has always taken on the big players with horses that nobody wanted.
He bought his last horse for $2 and a handshake. That same horse went on to earn $60,000 in stake money.
Over the last three decades he has won more than 30 races with pre-loved horses. His best-ever performer was a horse called Ricko Roo, who was labelled a rogue, but ended up winning eight races and more than $70,000.
Chambers held onto the belief that as long as a horse is happy, it will run to the best of its ability.
"Everybody is different. Everybody trains different. I believe horses are like people and you have to get to know them, to get the best out of that person or that animal," he said.
"I treat each horse as an individual."
But he was also a realist, like most in the game, and took the good times with the bad.
"One day you are on a high and the next day you are (clicking his fingers) back on the ground."
Chambers had been involved with horses since he was nine when he learnt to ride ponies at Foxton. It led to an apprenticeship in Woodville with top trainer Eric Ropiha, and he left school not long after he turned 14.
"He was a hard man, but he moulded me into who I am today," he said.
Before rising weight stopped his riding career, Chambers rode nine winners, including a double one day on Fashion Plate and Notorious, and he also rode over fences.
At the time the going wage was $10 a week, so when a job paying $150 came along, he took it. He moved back to Foxton as an apprentice mechanic, and saw a chance to earn extra money by breaking in horses.
Chambers was not afraid to speak out on challenges facing the racing industry, like falling attendance, declining race numbers, stake money distribution and a falling foal rate.
He said there was a downturn in the general popularity and public involvement in racing in recent years. He used a house metaphor.
"A house is only as strong as its foundation," he said.
He was critical of new plans for synthetic tracks being introduced at designated courses around the country, costing millions of dollars, and felt the money would be better spent elsewhere and used to grow the sport at the grass roots.
New Zealand's best horses were sent to Australia to race for big stakes, and that would never change. It was a good thing, as those races were accessible with the right horse, he said.
New Zealand shouldn't bother staging one race worth $1 million. It would be better for the industry here to have 10 races worth $100,000 instead.
There was a range of social factors contributing to declining attendance at race meetings that used to draw large crowds, he said.
"The majority of people that are on racecourses now are the people that work with the horses - the trainers, the stable hands, the vets, the barrier boys, the owners, farriers, transporters - it comes together on the day to create a business."
He said there was also a large amount of related businesses that benefited from racing, like stable staff, saddlers, agistment farms, contractors and feed merchants.
"It's bigger than just one raceday and people are not aware of that."
Chambers had actively supported the game at club level in recent years as a president of the Foxton Racing Club, recently stepping down from the role after almost three years.
