Congratulations to Margaret for 40 years as part of the HF Family

40 years ago, a special person joined the HF family. That special person is Margaret Cairney

Hugh M Fulton (1969 – Present) HF Group Chairman

There have been so many plus points that Margaret’s has brought to the party over the period, it is
impossible to remember specifics.

My Sister Joyce and Mags were a great team. The “oops duo” as I used to refer to them. The plus points out weighed the negative by a considerable multiplying factor.

I still miss all the pampering, that she gave clients, but more especially me, serving lunches and tea in a great kindly/efficient manner. She is an absolute one off.

Congratulations to you on this great achievement. Thanks for putting up with me

Hugh R. Fulton (2001 – Present)

As the current Managing Director of HF Group, it is my pleasure to congratulate Margaret on her long service achievement.

Margaret joined HF on the 27th of March 1981 as a sixteen-year-old office Junior. This date is just over 4 months after I was born, so she has been part of the family for as long as I can remember. During this time Margaret has worked for and with three generations of the Fulton Family.

However, my earliest memory that I do know are true is from many moons ago and pre-mobiles phones. Any time my sisters or I needed to speak to our Dad we had to phone Margaret. It was then up to Margaret to decide if the message was urgent or could wait. If we were ever found to be rude to Margaret, we knew all about it when our Dad returned home later that evening.

I am sure Margaret will agree to this day that I am still never rude to her, however not so much because of fear of our now Chairman but because of genuine fear that she might just one day follow through with one of her many famous saying “I’ll burst you” 

Long service to a company is a two-way arrangement and it is a source of great pride to me that, Margaret has stayed with HF for four decades.

I can honestly say that there is never a day where Wee Mags will not manage to put a smile on your face and she really such an integral part of our office function.

Thank you, Margaret, for being so loyal and dedicated in everything you do for the sake of the company’s success. We sincerely appreciate your hard work and efforts year after year. Thank you for your many wonderful years of service!”. We are truly happy to have you at HF.

Jill Nicolson (2011 – Present)

Congratulations on reaching the big 4-0. I’d like to take this opportunity to thank you and emphasise how much we all appreciate your 40 years of service.

Growing up you were always the go to friendly face of the office, and continue to be to this day. We’re just grateful you survived the fall down the stairs in Osborne St with the red box.

I fondly remember the summers spent filing the brochures in to the old wooden drawers in the now Comms office and when you took me to The Star Bar for rice and hair pudding! Both Laura and I (and mum!) would have gone many a Valentine’s Day with no cards growing up if it wasn’t for you.

Although some customers may refer to you as the rottweiler, they don’t appreciate how kind and caring you are behind that bark; they just need to ‘keep to their promises!’
Thank you for all your hard work and dedication to the HF family, you have been an invaluable member and we all greatly appreciate it.

Joyce Fulton (1978 – Present)

As you can tell with my start date, I have worked with Margaret for a number of years and over the years our friendship has grown. I have had many a laugh listening to her credit control calls, she is a force to be reckoned with! Persistent is an understatement.

She has been a great worker and like most of us she has made the odd mistake, which made our Chairman invent the “oops book” where he would log any mistakes we made and not let us forget them.
Well done Margaret what a milestone you have reached, keep up the good work.

John A Ferguson (1983 – Present)

Congratulations Margaret, you are an integral player in this team that we know as HF.
Winning work for our business is important for the sales and estimating team, Delivering the work is also important for the engineers but collecting the cash is equally as important as without money we would have no business.

Margaret, you have fulfilled this role now for 40 years, chasing customers, hounding contract managers ensuring cashflow.

Then we have the fun and caring side of Margaret, always collecting for someone else’s Birthday, Baby or special event in their lives.

Always looking for that night out with the Girls or the Christmas Party and looking for that boogie on the dancefloor !

Margaret, we look forward to many more years working with you, enjoy your work anniversary celebrations, albeit not quite in the surroundings that will allow what you would have loved.

Melanie Higgs (1994 – Present)

Working with Margaret or Wee Mags as she is affectionately known, has been a pleasure over the last 27 years and she has now reached 40 years’ service, like most friendships we have had our ups and downs but mainly ups and many fun filled nights out which have resulted in sore heads the following day!
Up until recently Mags dedicated a lot of her personal time to the Rainbow charity spending her free time offering a befriending service to elderly people who lacked companionship, she would take them shopping / out to lunch or even just sit and have a chat with them and when she wasn’t doing that, she was spending time with her 2 daughters and helping to look after her 5 grand kids; this shows her true heart.
On a professional level she has had many a debtor quaking in their boots, in fact, one client sent her a Birthday card with a Rottweiler on the front for fun which she found rather amusing although she is certainly not to be messed with!

For those of you who haven’t heard them direct, here are 2 of Mags’s most used quotes
• Here you! I’ll burst you!!
• Calm your brogues / keep your hair on

One tip though, hide your sweeties and biscuits! one is never enough (oh and your nuts and crisps)

John Balmer (1997 – Present)

Wee Margaret is an HF institution! 40 years! Wow what loyalty and service! She is part of the HF family and is a well-liked and conscientious individual.

She has given her life effort for the business and that loyalty has been reciprocated by the business to her. A very well-liked and respected member of the team who is not afraid of hard work.

Neil Jones (1999 – Present)

‘Margaret is the Mortise & Tenon that holds the Glasgow office together. It should be, Margaret helped build Albert Drive office .

There is no bigger personality in HF than Margaret and I don’t think that can be debated, never change Maggie Mayhem, we all love you & well done on surviving 40years; however, your Parole is denied and you have to stay.

Christopher Lees (2007 – Present)

Margaret never forgets my birthday (mostly because it is the same day as her daughters’) but I like to think it’s because I’m her favourite member of staff. She always enquires after my family because she has a genuine interest (and perhaps a bit of nosiness) in how other people are getting on. Margaret is a permanent and very valued fixture within the HF Team. 40 years at one company is quite something.

Congratulations Margaret. A one-off.

2021 Zoom Party

Greg Madine (1994 – Present)

I don’t have any photographs or anything (cameras were in their infancy ) ……. only memories.
I first met Margaret in 1985 as I started my Electrical apprenticeship with Fulton’s in our old office in
Osborne Street before we moved to Albert Drive.

Every Apprentice had to spend 2 weeks in the office which was your worst nightmare. That is when I first met Margaret. The absolute pummelling, I took for 2 weeks solid…… I thought it was magic.

She tried to set me up with a girl the same age as me and as hard as nails from Milton. The girl would not entertain me, as in her eyes I favoured the “wrong” football team, which the office found hilarious!!
Anyway, at a works night out in the Admiral bar, Margaret and a few other office girls jumped on top of me when I was sitting down and gave me a wedgy and ripped my kecks clean off.

Aye……. Margaret probably still has a piece of my kecks framed above her mantlepiece!!

Phil Belcher (2002 – Present)

I still remember when I first met Mags.
It was my very first visit to the office and I was quite nervous about meeting everyone.
Walking in I was met by this lovely lady with a big smile introducing herself as Margaret and showing me up to the boardroom introducing me to people as we walked bye. Thanks for the welcome Mags.

Some fond memories over the years, mainly being chased to sort out outstanding invoices. Wow 40 years, well done.

Peter Burnett (2006 – Present)

40 Years ago, to this week – Big events from this week in that year
The 1st London marathon was run
Blondie was #1 with Rapture
Tories were in power with another Mags at the Helm.
And HF employed Margaret Cairney, which is very Apt in relation to the items above
Mags you have 40 years’ service, wow that is a Marathon and some and you are still running Blondie at no1 (I am sure that is who you model your hair styles from)
Margret Thatcher (you are HF GROUPS very own iron lady) many a customer shudders when you come a calling.

My earliest memory is the 1st day I walked into HF and as I Walked through the office, Mags looked up and said who are you!! and you and who are you looking for (with her best iron lady stare)

Well done Mags. You make me smile every time I talk with you. You are 1 in a million

Robert Campbell (1989 – Present)

Margaret Cairney AKA, Maggie, Wee Mags, an HF institution for 40 years not out. An integral part of what makes HF a special place. May she continue to terrorise our customers (and us ) for another 40 years. Have a great day Maggie x

Brendan Duffy (1998 – Present)

The universe has constants helping to keep things in the air and things on the ground. At HF, we have our own constant…..Mags!
She’s constantly:
• Keeping things….and people…..and clients in their place and on their toes.
• There when you need her
• Hounding naughty clients (when they don’t want her to)
• Organising social gatherings
• In the middle of these social gatherings
Stay constant Mags…. don’t change.

Craig Stevenson (1992 – Present)

Many congratulations Margaret on your 40-year Anniversary with HF. This is a fantastic achievement and testament to your hard work and dedication during this time.
I’ve known you since I was an eighteen-year-old spending my first few months in the stores and I have nothing but fond memories of one of the kindest people I’ve ever come across.
You have a heart of gold but at the same time can turn on the “Rottweiler” instinct when it comes to dealing with debtors. I always recall Stuart telling clients on the phone that he’d send wee Mags’s round in a black van with a baseball bat to sort them out and that was usually enough of a threat to get them to pay up .Here’s to another 40 years-service to the matriarch of HF!

Niven Baillie (1985 – Present)

My first memories of Margaret Cairney was when I was stuck in the Edinburgh Stores back in 1985, Margaret’s name was always heard around the office usually with the response tell her I am out from Phil or Harry!
Even when Margaret took a day off (not that she took many) would pop through on the train to see Ronnie in the Edinburgh office, think I met her daughters when they were still in the buggy.
Margaret always thinks about others first and I feel she has a heart of gold; she always asks about my family and likewise we have spoken about hers.
Don’t know where we would be without you. Well Done Margaret 40 years and still at it.

Eric Bowie (1987 – Present)

Margaret or “Cairney” as she is referred to in my household, is someone with whom I have butted heads with on more than one occasion but on many more occasions shared a laugh with.
I will be forever haunted by her maternity outfit when she was carrying the twins, baggy trousers held up with a piece of string.

Stuart Dron (1990 – Present)

Mags, 40 years is an incredible achievement! Huge congratulations and a big big hug.
31 years you have been in my life and so many memories, a true constant for me over the years as the company grew, changed and developed but you were always there, always a friend, always supportive and never shy of offering an opinion or advice.
Always the one approaching with an envelope collecting cash, always the one racing in for the birthday kiss (even although I’d kept it a secret).
Always the one keeping us in check in the back office for too much cheek and hilarity. Always the one trying to lure the apprentice into the basement…only kidding. And back in the day, always the one rounding us up and making sure we all went across to the Lord Darnley on a Friday after work.
We are all so proud of your achievement and all so much the better for having you in our lives. Many more years to go Margaret.