Mr. H. S. Ruru

Te Ao Hou, September 1966, Page 2

Mr. H. S. Ruru A prominent Maori sportsman in his youth and a former chairman and member of the Wanganui representative Rugby selection panel, Mr Hata Sonny Ruru, of Koromiko Road, Gonville, died suddenly on 25 May, aged 60. Mr Ruru had made his mark in Wanganui not only as a sportsman but also as a Maori land consultant and interpreter. In Rugby he represented Hawkes Bay as second five-eighth while still at Te Aute Boys' College. Later as a Maori all Black trialist he was considered in his day to be one of the most brilliant attacking backs in New Zealand. He was the Maori representative on the Wanganui Rugby Football Union's management committee for five years and served a three-year term as a member of the New Zealand Rugby Union's Maori Advisory Board. He was assistant manager and coach of the Maori All Black team which toured Fiji and Samoa several years ago. For many years he worked in the Maori land section of the Maori Affairs Department as clerk and interpreter of the Maori Land Court. He later set up his own business as a land agent in Ridgway Street and was a member of the Real Estate Institute. Ill-health forced him to retire three years ago. He is survived by his wife and daughter, Mrs Emma Chote, of Blenheim, and sons. Rangi and Tama-i-Uia, both of Wanganui. The funeral service was held at St Peter's Anglican Church, Gonville. Mr Ruru was buried in the family burial ground at Taki Pa, Te Karaka, Gisborne.