Taupo farewelled one of its best-known businesswomen, Elaine Westerman, yesterday.
Elaine Westerman and her twin sister, Yvonne, took over the family firm Westerman Real Estate from their mother, Dorothy, in the 1990s and built it into Taupo's biggest real estate company, with Mrs Westerman specialising in large scale development projects and information technology.
Close to 1000 people packed the Great Lake Centre for Elaine Westerman's funeral, where business associates and family members spoke of her determination and passion for the competitive real estate field.
She was also a busy mother and grandmother, with three children and grandson Bentley to keep tabs on and she liked to run and cycle in her spare time.
Speaker Mike Bayley of Bayley Corporation Ltd said Elaine had plenty of the kind of business savvy that couldn't be learned or taught, while her son Bradley paid tribute to "a beautiful, inspiring, courageous woman".
Elaine Westerman, 52, died last Thursday after being diagnosed with an aggressive form of liver cancer six weeks earlier.