Tributes flowed at the Waimakariri mayor's farewell function at the Rangiora RSA on Friday, with special mention given for the support of his wife, Marilyn.
Mr Ayers will retire on October 12, after 36 years in local government, including the last nine as mayor, leading the Waimakariri district it its recovery from the 2010 and 2011 earthquakes.
Minister for Greater Christchurch Regeneration, Dr Megan Woods, said the enormity of the challenge of stepping up as mayor just a month after the September 2010 earthquake ''must have been overwhelming''.
She praised Mr Ayers' leadership in preparing the Waimakariri Residential Red Zone Recovery Plan, which provided a blueprint for developing the Avon Otakaro River Corridor Regeneration Plan, which was signed off recently.
She said Mrs Ayers' love for her community was ''just as strong'' and ''you will be missed just as much''.
Waimakariri MP Matt Doocey shared some words from former Earthquake Recovery Minister Gerry Brownlee.
''You led the council with a considered approach, you worked collaboratively with CERA (the Canterbury Earthquake Recovery Authority) and you always did what was best for the Waimakariri district.''
Mr Doocey said of Mr Ayers: ''You respected your office, while remaining approachable.''
Deputy Mayor Kevin Felstead said Mr Ayers had worked tirelessly to get the best possible outcome for the district after the earthquakes.
''When I was first elected to council there was a tension between Rangiora and Kaiapoi, but that has quickly eroded under David's leadership, as he has been a very inclusive mayor.''
Mr Ayers said he was just one leader in ''a community of leaders''.
''In this context I always see myself as part of a much wider context, with you and all the people out there in the wider community.''
He said the responsibilities of a mayor can vary daily. ''I remember being at a high-powered meeting at the Canterbury Club in Christchurch planning the future of Greater Christchurch and then later that day chasing after a runaway rooster in Blackett Street.''
His most emotional moment as mayor was at a meeting in Kaiapoi just after the earthquakes, when Waimakariri District Council engineer Gary Boot announced that sewage was no longer being flushed into the Kaiapoi River and the audience cheered.
''That showed that even though the people were doing it hard, the river was important too.''
