UKRAINE WAR HERO'S FAMILY TELLS 'OUR SON WAS A WARRIOR'

Kane Te Tai's proud parents remember their beloved boy, who was killed on the front lines

- Cloe Willetts

There’s a space in Ngaire Te Tai’s home she visits each day for quiet moments, where photos of her son Kane sit beside a glass display cabinet holding army medals, poppies and a stuffed teddy bear in military attire. A sculptured turtle sits as a centrepiece, metres from a baby photo of the dad-of-one, in honour of his battlefield codename “Turtle”.

Memories are all Ngaire, a mum-of-seven, has left of her firstborn now, along with the bittersweet knowledge he died a Ukrainian war hero.

In April 2022, Kane flew from New Zealand to Ukraine to support the fight against Russia’s invasion, a cause the former New Zealand Defence Force soldier, 38, vowed he was prepared to die for. Sadly, on 20 March this year, while on the front lines in eastern Ukraine, Kane lost his life.

“I just want people to know that Kane was a warrior and he went out like a warrior,” says Ahipara-based Ngaire, 56, chatting to Woman’s Day about her beloved son, who was of Ngāpuhi descent.

“I love talking about him and I feel a connection when I’m sharing stories about Kane. It’s like it immortalises him.”

From the time her son could read and write at four, Ngaire knew Kane had a mind that yearned for stimulation and learning.

He excelled at his Sega video games and was equally comfortable outdoors in the bush near his childhood home in Beach Haven, Auckland.

“He was at one with nature and a typical boy, but in saying that, he was a mummy’s boy,” laughs Ngaire, who was a single mother until she met her husband Keith when Kane was four. “He was really smart and he had to have challenging activities to do.”