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Businessman Craig Norgate’s funeral was held on Tuesday at St Joseph’s Catholic Church in his hometown of Hawera, next door to the school he attended as a boy.
Norgate, 50, was Fonterra’s first chief executive, from 2001 to 2003.
As hundreds of mourners arrived for the private service, attendees had to spill out into a neighbouring hall.
The service was led by Monsignor David Bell.
Bell said Craig loomed large in the lives of many. “Whether he made money was not as important as being able to devote his heart and soul to what he did.”
Norgate’s god-daughter, Ashley Douglas, read from The Book of Wisdom and Bishop Owen Dolan shared a passage from the Gospel of John. Niece Emma Jones performed a solo of Hallelujah, unaccompanied.
Former Hawera High School teacher and one-time Taranaki rugby coach Bill Batchelor spotted Norgate’s brilliance early on in the classroom.
“When I first enrolled Craig Norgate we did IQ tests, and he was the brightest kid I’ve ever tested.”
Despite his success in big business, Norgate described himself as a “boy from the ‘Naki”, and those who knew him called him humorous, energetic, passionate, visionary, driven and inspirational.
Norgate’s well-known love for rugby was highlighted at the service.
A Chiefs flag was laid over his coffin, and his family had asked for donations to be made to Sport Taranaki in lieu of flowers.
Source
- stuff.co.nz
- stuff.co.nz
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