April 03, 2019
Soldier to social worker Eddie Te Moananui dies
Soldier, social worker, and businessperson Eddie Te Moananui has died in Whangārei at the age of 85.
Mr Te Moananui, from Ngāti Tamaterā and Hauraki, rose to the rank of lieutenant colonel and earned an MBE, Efficiency Decoration and Bar, and a UN Service Medal.
In civilian life he worked for the Social Security Department, which eventually became social welfare, where he was active in the short lived Maatua Whāngai programme which attempted to address the large number of Māori children in care.
For a period he consulted the Hauraki Māori Trust Board, taking an interest in housing, and he also worked for Te Wānanga o Aotearoa.
His family says the ashes of Eruini Taharua Te Moananui have been scattered in the Coromandel as he wished.
A memorial service will be held at the Hamilton Gardens Pavillion on April 14.
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