A community is in mourning after the devastating confirmation that 15-year-old Sharon Maccanico lost her life in the Mount Maunganui landslide — a tragedy made even more heartbreaking by the fact that she died alongside her boyfriend, Max Furse-Kee. Two young lives, full of promise, dreams, and plans for the future, were taken in a single, terrifying moment.
Sharon’s parents have spoken through unimaginable grief, saying their hearts are “completely shattered” by the loss of their daughter. What began as an ordinary day ended in horror when the landslide struck, leaving families waiting in agonising uncertainty before the worst fears were confirmed. For them, life has been split into a before and an after — and nothing will ever be the same again.
Sharon and Max were both students at Pakuranga College and were widely known as inseparable. Friends describe them as a couple who were rarely seen apart, always laughing, always side by side. Teachers and classmates remember their warmth, kindness, and the way they brought light into any room they entered. They were young, in love, and just beginning to imagine what the rest of their lives might look like. That future was stolen in an instant.
As news of the tragedy spread, shock rippled through the school and wider community. Grief counsellors were made available as students struggled to process how two people they had seen just days earlier were suddenly gone. Flowers, handwritten notes, and messages of love have begun appearing in tribute — each one a small attempt to make sense of an unbearable loss.
For Sharon’s family, the pain is raw and relentless. They are mourning not only the daughter they loved, but the milestones she will never reach — the exams she will never sit, the dreams she will never chase, the life she will never get to live. The knowledge that she was not alone in her final moments brings little comfort, but it stands as a heartbreaking testament to the bond she shared with Max. The Mount Maunganui landslide has left scars far deeper than the physical damage it caused. It has torn two families apart and shaken an entire community, reminding everyone how fragile life can be — and how quickly everything can change.
As friends, family, and strangers alike grieve Sharon and Max, one truth echoes through every tribute: they were deeply loved, and they will never be forgotten. Their story is not just one of loss, but of young love, connection, and the devastating cost of a moment no one could have predicted. 💔