A life spent helping others

 

Long time Mangawhai businesswoman and philanthropist Bonnie Douglas died recently and was remembered in a service at the Senior Citizens Hall attended by more than 150 people.

Mrs Douglas (81) and her late husband Vic were well known in Mangawhai as former own-ers of the Victor Douglas Garage in Wood St, which they jointly owned and operated for more than 20 years.

On her husband’s death, Mrs Douglas continued to operate the garage until it was sold in 1998.

Born in 1933, Mrs Douglas attended the Molesworth School, then the Mangawhai School and the Tara School, growing up on a farm located between Mangawhai Heads and Cove Rd.

On leaving school, she was for many years caregiver to her mother who was an invalid.

In later years she became Registrar for Births, Deaths and Marriages at the Mangawhai Post Office.

She met her husband Vic at a dance in Kaiwaka and married in 1955.

They purchased the Wood St Garage in 1962 and owned it together for 20 years before Vic died. She carried on running the garage until 1998.

With her husband, she was instrumental in the formation of the Mangawhai Fire Brigade, and for many years activated the fire siren calling volunteers. People would ring Bonnie at the garage when there was a fire and she would manually activate the siren.

She was also for many years the Weigh Master for the then Otamatea Fishing and Boating Club and Patron, Key Holder and sponsor of the Mangawhai Surf Lifesaving Club.

During their ownership of the Wood St garage, the Douglas family lived behind the Wood St garage.

Mrs Douglas was remembered as a caring person who often assisted motorists who ran out of petrol outside normal hours, letting those who couldn’t afford it to pay for petrol when they obtained money, and refused to compete with other Wood St retailers by selling similar grocery lines.

She is survived by daughters Gayleene and Julie, grandchildren and great-grandchildren. Mrs Douglas lost her son Colin in 1981 at the age of 19 years when he was killed in a car accident.

Says daughter Julie, who still lives in Mangawhai, of her mother: “Mum was a really caring person and a great mother.”

Those who knew Bonnie Douglas would agree.

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