Mount Maunganui landslide victim Max Furse-Kee farewelled at Auckland funeral

Hundreds of mourners have attended the funeral of Max Furse-Kee, one of the youngest victims of the Mount Maunganui landslide.

A memorial service was held today at the Bucklands Beach Yacht Club in Auckland’s Half Moon Bay, where family and friends gathered to remember a young life cut short.

Mourners paid tribute by placing yellow flowers on to a display for the teen. Tears filled the room as loved ones spoke.

Close friends of the 15-year-old spoke through tears about the future they believed lay ahead of them.

“I never thought I’d be writing this, I thought we would be listening to Drake, dressing up for Halloween like we’ve done every year,” one said.

“I thought we’d be going to the Gold Coast and living there together when we finished school.

“Max was such a great friend to me; he always encouraged me, and he was always there for me when I needed someone to cheer me up,” another said.

“Never in a million years did I think I would lose one of my closest friends.”

Max Furse-Kee with family.

Celebrant Julia Cameron spoke about how Max had been looking forward to his birthday.

“Like so many 15-year-olds, Max was looking ahead, he was excited about turning 16, about getting his provisional driver’s licence.

“That milestone passed last Wednesday, six days after Max died.”

Max Furse-Kee with family.

She said the grief was not only for the person Max was, but for who he was becoming and “the future he was stepping into with hope and excitement”.

“His absence leaves a space that can never be filled, but his presence will never be erased.

“Max lives on in the love he gave, the laughter he shared, the memories he created, and the lives he touched.

Celebrant Julia Cameron.

Cameron also shared how Max had recently discovered basketball.

“He didn’t just like it, he threw himself into it.

“He was passionate, committed, and became a better and better player.

“It became a source of joy, focus, and pride for him – another glimpse of what he could have become in all that still lay ahead."

Cameron described Max’s relationship with his girlfriend, Sharon Maccanico, who also died in the slip, as “perfectly in sync”.

“They loved watching streaming series together, often from their separate homes, perfectly in sync, like they were sitting side by side on the sofa even though they weren’t,” Cameron said.

“If one paused the programme they were watching, it got paused in the other house as well.”

The pair were holidaying together at the Mount Maunganui Beachside Holiday Park when the deadly landslide hit.

Pakuranga College student couple Max Furse-Kee and Sharon Maccanico, both 15, were killed in the January 22 landslide from Mauao into the Mount Maunganui Beachside Holiday Park. Photo / via police

In a statement released via police on Sunday, his mother, Hannah Furse, said his family had taken “great comfort in knowing that Max spent his final days with Sharon, someone he loved so deeply, and with her family, who loved him too.”

Six people were killed when the landslide came down on the Pilot Bay side of the campground, carrying with it tents, caravans and structures on January 22.

The victims are Lisa Anne Maclennan, 50, Mans Loke Bernhardsson, 20, Jacqualine Suzanne Wheeler, 71, Susan Doreen Knowles, 71, Sharon Maccanico, 15, and Max Furse-Kee, 15.