Sharon Shobha Devi Lingham

Sharon Shobha Devi Lingham (Sharon Lingham) (11 December 1956 – 8 March 2010) (née Verma) was a New Zealand entrepreneur and philanthropist.

Life and career

She was born to a Rajasthani Arya Samaj Indian family, before moving to New Zealand to settle. She was a well-known personality in the Christchurch-Canterbury region of New Zealand, being involved in local media TV stations (including CTV), and also as a celebrity ambassador, with her well-known website, www.sharonlingham.com.[1] She was also the supporter of many local charities, including the Royal New Zealand Foundation for the Blind, KidsCan and Ronald McDonald House.[2]

In 2006 she organised a Global Wedding Extravaganza in Victoria Square as a fundraiser for The Salvation Army.[3] Her Global Extravaganza in 2008 and 2009 in Victoria Square in Christchurch also attracted many people, and brought people of different ethnicities together.

She also ran for the Christchurch City Council Hagley-Ferrymead and Shirley-Papanui wards.

Lingham was variously known as the 'Fuchsia Queen' through her business Canterbury Fuchsia Centre, and later known as the 'Limousine Queen', through her business Crown Limousines NZ Ltd, which provided luxury transport for the many celebrities that came into the region.

Death and legacy

Lingham died of a subarachnoid haemorrhage on 8 March 2010.

The company Crown Limousines NZ Ltd still continues to support the local charities she was involved with. Her son Durgadas (Rodney) Lingham is an Ayurvedic Practitioner and Veda Kovid (Proficiency in Vedic Knowledge), and continues her inspiration, much of which he derived from her.

References
  1. "WIFT New Zealand | Film and Television Industry News from Women in Film and Television New Zealand – Sad News of WIFT member Sharon Lingham". www.wiftnz.org.nz. Retrieved 18 September 2019.
  2. "KidsCan spending worries donor". Stuff. Retrieved 18 September 2019.
  3. Tuesday; January 2006, 31; Limousines, 10:24 am Press Release: Crown. "Global Wedding Extravaganza | Scoop News". www.scoop.co.nz. Retrieved 18 September 2019.CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.