Leadership Awards 2012: Jocelyn Callaghan

Jocelyn Callaghan loves to see children succeed.

The Rotorua woman was recently awarded a Rotorua District Council community leadership award for her work.

Ms Callaghan is involved in the community through a range of activities through kohanga reo, school, sports and iwi. She has dedicated more than 40 years to netball, from being a player to a coach and a supporter. She has helped children of various age groups in netball, from primary age to high school level, to coaching representative teams.

The nomination for Ms Callaghan also stated she was a passionate person for her iwi and had given a lot to kapa haka, in Mataatua as well as Te Arawa, through secondary schools.

It also stated she was "a very hard working lady and a leader in her own right". Ms Callaghan said she was shocked to hear she had received the award but it was made more special when she found out who nominated her.

"It turned out it was my brother-in-law," she said. "He died last month and he actually nominated me and did all this before he passed away. So this has become a real significant point in my life."

Ms Callaghan said she loved dedicating her time, especially to children in the community.

"I get a lot of satisfaction out of seeing our young people uplift themselves and for Maori children I love it when they get close to their identity," she said. "It is really awesome to see our young people develop themselves and to watch them achieve."

She said people who were interested in volunteering or being involved in the community should give it a go.