Halaevalu Mataʻaho ʻAhomeʻe was born on 29 May 1926, the eldest daughter of The Hon. Tevita Manu-’o-pangai, ‘Ahome’e, sometime Governor of Vava’u and Ha’apai and Minister for Police and his wife, Heuʻifanga Veikune, a great-granddaughter of the Tu'i Tonga She was also a great-great-granddaughter of Maʻafu.
On 10 June 1946, Halaevalu married her distant relative Crown Prince Tāufaʻāhau of Tonga. The Queen Mother celebrated her 85th birthday in 2011 with a five-day celebration held in May. The celebrations began with a garden party for more than one hundred Tongan women held at the home of the President of the Free Wesleyan Church of Tonga, Rev. Dr. ‘Ahio. The Queen Mother attended a Roman Catholic mass at St. Mary's Cathedral in Ma'ufanga with KingSiaosi Tupou V on May 26, 2011. The Tongan Ministry of Education, Women Affairs and Culture held a student celebration for her birthday on May 27, with primary school students from Pangai Lahi to Teufaiva Park, presenting the Queen Mother with birthday gifts. A private party was held in Ha'avakatolo the next day, followed by a church service held at the Centennial Church on Sunday, May 29, and a luncheon at the Royal Palace in Nukuʻalofa. The Queen Mother embarked on a two-week trip to the U.S. state of Utah in July and August 2011. Specifically, the Queen Mother came to visit the Tongan United Methodist Church in West Valley City, Utah, whose congregation had raised approximately $500,000 in less than a year to pay off the mortgage on the building. The Mayor of West Valley City, Michael K. Winder, awarded the Queen Mother the key to the city on July 27, 2011. She also met with Utah GovernorGary Herbert the next day.
Death
On 19 February 2017, the Queen Mother died aged 90, which was confirmed by her granddaughter Princess Lātūfuipeka Tukuʻaho, High Commissioner of Tonga to Australia, a week after she was flown to Auckland, New Zealand, for minor medical issues; the cause of death, however, was not released publicly. The Queen Mother was flown back to Tonga by the Royal Beechcraft G.18S Aircraft on February 28 flanked by the C-130 Hercules of the Royal New Zealand Air Force, after lying-in-state at the Tongan royal residence, 'Atalanga in Epsom, Auckland.
