Now, the project she has led from Dunedin has been recognised with an "international projects award" presented at the Lions Clubs International's black-tie gathering in the United States.
Mrs Hanning (69) is the national convener of the New Zealand Hart Walker Project, a campaign supported by Lions New Zealand that helped pay for specially-designed walking frames for children with cerebral palsy and other disabilities.
Mrs Hanning was invited to attend last month's conference in Minneapolis as a representative of one of three international projects vying for the award, also including an Aids programme in Kenya and a child vision programme in Minnesota.
The New Zealand programme was named the winner in front of several thousand Lions from more than 200 countries, and special mention was made of Mrs Hanning's contribution.
Back in Dunedin, she told the Otago Daily Times the recognition was "a bit overwhelming, actually".
"I thought we had done very well [to be a finalist] and I was really honoured to be asked to represent New Zealand Lions at the special function. But when it actually happened, it was huge."
The Hart Walker frames cost $9850 each, but allowed children with physical disabilities, particularly those with cerebral palsy, to experience hands-free walking - often for the first time.
Mrs Hanning has been working to provide the frames to New Zealand children for the past decade, since seeing them in use in Australia, and for the past two years has been the national convener of the New Zealand Lions' Hart Walker programme.
The programme had paid to provide about 120 frames for children around New Zealand, and organised clinics in Auckland, Wellington, Christchurch and Dunedin to help fit and adjust the frames, she said.
