Top brass and Oamaru colleagues yesterday paid tribute to Helen Tee on reaching 50 years of serving Farmers customers in Oamaru.
She was described as "an absolute legend".
Farmers regional manager Don Graham praised Mrs Tee’s legendary commitment as the "queen of lingerie".
"Fifty is a real, real milestone", he said.
"I can always rely on Helen ... on information on styles and products and stock. I wish I had a Helen in every store", he said during the celebration in the Oamaru store yesterday
To honour her unstinting service, special guests also included Farmers Group managing director David Norman and his wife Anne, Mr Graham, Waitaki District Mayor Gary Kircher and the Rev Bernard Wilkinson, a friend of her family since childhood.
About 20 former store managers, colleagues and family also attended.
Mrs Tee, 66, began in the store’s haberdashery department on Monday, August 19, 1974.
She later moved to womenswear and then lingerie.
Her friendly disposition and "immeasurable expertise" had been long praised by customers and colleagues, Mr Graham said.
Mrs Tee said she still enjoyed her consultant role at Farmers.
She was "blown away" by all the support expressed yesterday.
It was certainly a role which had enabled her to grow in confidence despite her initial misgivings because of a physical disability, Mrs Tee said.
"I was very timid and very shy. Because I’ve got a paralysed hand, I didn’t know whether I would be able to manage work .
"Well I came and I loved it. I still enjoy it as much as I did the first week", she said.
Mr Norman said there had been a lot of "change" since Mrs Tee started in 1974. Then, cash registers were non-electronic and stock-takes were done manually.
Raising a laugh with the audience Mr Norman said: "You remember all that, don’t you Helen?".
Significantly, Mrs Tee was the first, of a team of 12,000 throughout New Zealand’s Farmers stores, to reach 50 years of service.
"It’s not just the 50 years, it’s the quality of the tape measure.
"I do believe you have fitted just about everyone in Oamaru", Mr Norman said.
Oamaru Farmers manager Denise Ruka said Mrs Tee had ensured a "legacy" by looking after generations of local women.
