HAERE KI O KOUTOU TIPUNA

Dr Ronald Lawrence Whatu The death occurred recently at Seattle, Washington, of Dr Ronald Lawrence Whatu, formerly of Hamilton. He was 34. Dr Whatu was the son of the late Mrs Elizabeth Whatu, a prominent leader in the Hamilton Maori community who was awarded the Queen's Coronation Medal for her work. Born in 1932, he was educated at Frankton Primary School and Hamilton Boys' High School before attending Victoria University of Wellington. At Victoria University he distinguished himself by becoming the first Maori to win a Hugh Jenkins Memorial Scholarship. This entitled him to study at the Palmer School of Chiropractic in Davenport, Iowa, U.S.A. Dr Whatu graduated from the four-year course after three years of intensive study and in 1959 married Miss S. Shindledecker. After teaching for some time at the school from which he graduated, Dr Whatu began to practise three months ago in Seattle, Washington. Dr Whatu is survived by his wife and two young daughters and by four brothers and five sisters.

Mr Rufus Gilbert Oxley The death occurred recently at a private hospital in Palmerston North, of Mr Rufus Gilbert Oxley. He was 59. Mr Oxley, who was born in Christchurch, was a well known Wanganui River Maori elder. He was of the Ngati Pamoana subtribe of the Te Ati-Haunui-a-paparangi tribe, better known as the Wainui-a-Rui. For many years Mr Oxley was employed by the Ministry of Works, first as an overseer on the Wanganui River road and later at Taupo, where he lived. He was educated at Te Aute College. Mr Oxley won distinction on the rugby field in earlier years both as a Wanganui and as a Maori representative. He was a Justice of the Peace, a member of the Taupo Lions Club and the Taupo Prisoners' Aid Society, and a prominent international stamp dealer. Mr Oxley is survived by his wife, who is a member of the Tuwharetoa Tribe, and by three daughters.

The Rev. Henare Tipiwhenua Kaa The Rev. Henare Tipiwhenua Kaa, vicar of the Waiapu pastorate of the Anglican Church, died in Te Puia on 18 April 1966. Mr Kaa who was in his 63rd year had been in poor health for the past 12 months. A member of a prominent Rangitukia family, Mr Kaa was educated at St. Stephen's School and Te Aute College, and returned to Rangitukia to take up farming there. Always a leader in church affairs, Tipi Kaa as he was known, was a lay reader in the Waiapu district for many years before taking the cloth in 1958. He was appointed to the Te Kaba pastorate in that year as a deacon, being elevated to the priesthood in 1959. In 1963, Mr Kaa was appointed vicar of the Waiapu pastorate, where he remained until his death. Mr Kaa is survived by his wife, the former Miss Hohi Whaanga, and an adult family of 13, one of whom, John, is deacon to the Taupo pastorate.

Mr Alan Te Pohe Powell A former member of the R.N.Z.A.F., Mr Alan Te Pohe Powell, of Maungapohatu, Urewera, was accidentally killed on 16 March. Mr Powell was a logging contractor, who had played a big part in the road construction in the area. Later he logged timber from the Maungapohatu forests for the companies working there. Mr Powell is survived by his wife and six children. Mrs Powell is the daughter of the late Mr Hemi Tawa, a well-known Tuhoe