At first she planted trees and installed irrigation systems but, after getting her ticket through a course at her marae in Te Hapua, she became the health and safety officer responsible for the 205ha Mapua Orchard.
Like the other permanent staff Brown is also studying towards horticulture qualifications while she works.
The best thing about the job was that she could stay home instead of having to move to Auckland for work.
''I grew up in Auckland and I don't want to go back. Here you get a good job and good pay in a good atmosphere — we're a big whānau here — and it's not far from home,'' she said.
''I live in Te Kao, in the papakāinga. There's 25 houses there and probably just three that don't have jobs. All those houses are full and almost everyone's working. That never used to happen.''
Brown said the jobs boom was also good for the next generation. Children of working families had greater opportunities and didn't have to go without, while their parents could save money and look to the future instead of ''living pay cheque to pay cheque''.
''In Te Hapua there's a different culture now. People are able to do things, crime has dropped, thieving has stopped. It's great for the whole of the North.''
