Hamilton business leader and philanthropist John Gallagher has become a knight. Photo: Supplied
A prominent business leader and philanthropist in Waikato has become a knight.
Sir John Gallagher, a major shareholder and director of Gallagher Holdings, has been recognised in the New Year Honours for services to business, education, philanthropy and the community.
Sir John is a trustee of the Gallagher Charitable Trust, a distinguished fellow of the New Zealand Institute of Directors and director of Habitat for Humanity Hamilton.
He served for 25 years on the Council of the University of Waikato, including terms as pro-Chancellor then chancellor from 2003 to 2006.
Sir John was a Hamilton City councillor for 12 years, a regional councillor for three years and was the first recipient of the Hamilton medal for outstanding contribution to the city in 2014.
He was a Trustee of Skycity Hamilton Community Trust from 2003 to 2009, Hamilton Garden's Te Parapara Garden Trust from 2006 to 2012 and a councillor for the Young Enterprise Trust.
Sir John said as a director, he had always aimed to get into an organisation and "make it more streamlined, work better or fulfil its objectives".
He said he had had "a full life, and [was] still doing some of that sort of stuff - not quite as much as I used to".
Sir John said he was currently busy arranging his business ventures to be sustainable and effective for future generations.
"So I can look back on some of those things and say, hey, I really did make a difference to that organisation."
He was motivated in his charitable work about "assisting people in need".
"My bent is towards the younger generation - to see that they get on."
Outside of his business and charitable pursuits, Sir John had enjoyed scuba diving since he was 16 and had been involved in training and writing guides for divers in New Zealand.
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