A former senior manager at Mansfield District Council has been honoured for his services to the community and sport during his long career.

Geoff Waller was presented with the prestigious Paul Harris Fellowship by Mansfield Rotary at its latest meeting at Mansfield Museum.

He is known in the area for his role as director of Leisure Services at the council in the mid-1980s.

Geoff played a significant role in bringing major events to the area, including The Mansfield Show, which was held for five years towards the end of the 1980s.

A former member of Mansfield Rotary, Geoff also helped to pull off a major coup for the town when Miss World contestants visited Mansfield for a day’s filming and a lunchtime event with 400 guests at the Civic Centre hosted by Julia Morley, head of the Miss World Organisation.

Rotn Stewart Rickersey said: “The Mansfield Show was a prime example of how Geoff got the council behind things.”
Geoff and his wife, Iris, who died in July, moved to Devon following his retirement from the district council and he became secretary of Honiton Rotary.

The couple later returned to Mansfield to be closer to their two sons and grandchildren. Geoff, because of his sporting and leisure background, then became the East Midlands representative for Sport England and organised many fundraising events.

He is also a member of The Armchair Club in Mansfield, helping to raise nearly £300,000 to support local sportsmen and women and sports organisations and clubs. Geoff was also chairman of Mansfield District Leisure Trust for six years before stepping down from the role last year.