Beforehand, she was heavily involved in service to the communities in the City of Casey and in Berwick.
It is no surprise Margaret was awarded an Order of Australia Medal (OAM) over the King’s Birthday weekend.
“I felt very honoured because there are a lot of people in the community who deserve these awards – they all do so much for the community,” she told the Yarrawonga Chronicle.
In 2016, Margaret received the highest individual Rotary recognition when she was made a Paul Harris Fellow. She has held various executive positions in Rotary including president and treasurer. Margaret was also the president of the Inner Wheel Club of Berwick from 2012 to 2013.
It was her time in Indonesia between 1994-1995, and her contribution towards establishing maternity clinics, when she recounted that “we helped build these clinics and it was saving all these lives, the babies that couldn’t be saved because they didn’t have proper facilities”.
“During my service with the Inner Wheel and Rotary, I have been privileged to have been involved in the Cord Blood project and our work in the provision of maternity clinics in Indonesia and so many others.”
The OAM awardee loves Rotary. ”If you’re a member of a Rotary club, you can go anywhere in the world and there’s always going to be someone there to welcome you. You get a lot of friendship out of it,” Margaret said.
One of the more memorable initiatives that she previously had with Rotary for Berwick and Casey was putting together an all-abilities dance ball that had an emphasis on inclusion for those with disabilities and higher needs.
The demand for the ball was immense, with Margaret recalling that “we had to have two because there were that many of them”.
“We had dance practice and lessons every week, we had someone come in and teach these young people these routines.
“One particular man, he was in a wheelchair and it was lovely you know, to see this young fella dancing around the floor in his wheelchair.”
Born in East Kilbride, just 15 miles east of Glasgow, Scotland in 1947, Margaret, at age 15, migrated with her family to Australia.
Eventually, she met and married Dennis Heslin and they spent most of their married life in Warragul.
“When we moved to Warragul, Dennis joined the Rotary and of course, I sort of went along with him, and for projects that he was involved with, I helped out where I could.”
Margaret’s decision to join community groups and then contribute significantly has led to national recognition.
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