Island kingdom of Tonga mourns the death of its queen mother

Associated Press
Queen Mother Halaevalu Mata'aho, center, wearing her own crown from her July 4 1967 coronation as Queen Consort to King Tupou IV, smiles at her grandson. (Linny Folau/Matangi Tonga Online via AP)

NUKU’ALOFA, Tonga: The South Pacific island kingdom of Tonga is mourning the death of its queen mother, who dedicated her time to helping the elderly and those with disabilities.
Halaevalu Mata’aho died Sunday at the age of 90 in Auckland, New Zealand, after traveling there for health reasons. The cause of her death has not been released by her family.
Her funeral procession will be held in Tonga on Feb. 28, when most people in the country of just over 100,000 are expected to turn out wearing black.
She will be particularly missed by the Alonga Center and at the Tonga Red Cross, where leaders say she worked tirelessly.
She was the mother of two kings: George Tupou V, who died in 2012, and the current monarch, King Tupou VI.