Revd Wiki Netana Patuawa

Te Ao Hou, June 1967, Page 2

Revd Wiki Netana Patuawa Many were present from Mangonui and Hokianga counties for the tangi and funeral at Mamaranui of the Revd W. N. Patuawa, mission curate in charge of the Parengarenga Maori Pastorate, who died in Auckland Public Hospital on 17 February. Revd Patuawa was on the eve of his transfer from the Kaitaia Parochial District to mission work among the Maoris in Auckland, where his wide experience and mana would have made his work most effective, and was actually speaking at his farewell at Peria when he was taken ill. He was widely respected by Maori and Pakeha alike, and ministered to both communities while in the north. His loss will be a blow to Anglican Church work in the wide field that has opened in Auckland, replacing to such an extent the former opportunities in the country, for the Revd Patuawa with his maturity, wide experience and knowledge of hundreds of people would have been an ideal choice. Mr Patuawa was a member of the Ngati Whatua tribe and had connexions with Aupouri, the major tribe in the north. He claimed direct descent from the chief Ruatara, who was largely responsible for the bringing of Christianity to the Maori people by the Revd Samuel Marsden. He was ordained priest in St Mary's Cathedral in Auckland in 1955, serving curacies at Waimate North, St. Thomas', Freeman's Bay, Kaitaia, Hokianga and Peria before taking charge of the Parengarenga Pastorate. He is survived by his wife, daughter and seven sons.