Latter-day Saint Life

After Viral Missionary Haka, BYU Rugby Team Performs Emotional Haka to Strengthen Coach Battling Cancer

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Last year, Sister Kotahi Tarawhiti's touching homecoming after serving in the New Hampshire Manchester Mission gained quite the attention, receiving nearly 100,000 views on YouTube.

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Video Companion
Kotahi Tarawhiti Church of Jesus Christ Missionary Homecoming Haka

When Sister Tarawhiti landed home in Salt Lake City, Utah, she was surprised when her father, Wayne, her family, and even some members of BYU's rugby team performed a haka to greet her. This haka, written by Sister Tarawhiti's uncle, actually talks about the Book of Mormon and is something the family hopes will help spread the gospel in a unique way.

What came as even more of a surprise was that her grandparents flew in from New Zealand to be there for the welcome. With this video, her family wrote, "Our family had not seen Kotahi for 19 months . . . That is one reason this haka is so heartfelt by her father. You can watch the deep love for our daughter shown here. Being Maori, this haka was the strongest way her father could show her how proud he was of her completing 19 months of service teaching others about the gospel of Jesus Christ." 

As a coach of the BYU rugby team, Wayne Tarawhiti's team helped support him for this special occasion. And now, a year later, they are supporting their coach in a new way.

While Wayne Tarawhiti battles cancer, his team decided to perform this haka to help strengthen and support him.

Along with this video, Nancy Tarawhiti posted, "The outpouring of love for my brother is very humbling and gives me big fat tears. Thank you all so much. #teamwayne"

Lead image a screenshot from the video of Sister Tarawhiti returning from her mission above.
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