William Makuri Cotter was born at Makuri in 1894, the eldest son and second child of Timothy Cotter, farmer and hotel-keeper, and Kate Cotter, nee Dunnage. He went to Dannevirk High School, of which he became dux in 1912. He entered Otago University Medical School in 1913, graduating MB ChB in 1917. At university he was the mile representative, and was awarded an athletics blue. After graduating he worked for a while as a locum, then as a house surgeon to Carrick Robertson. In 1918 he joined the Army for the remainder of the war, and then worked in Christchurch during the great influenza epidemic of that year. In 1919 he entered a special area practice in Runanga. There he developed a great affection for the people of the West Coast, and became life-long friends with many of the founders of the Labour Party. In 1922 he moved to Britain with his wife and two young children to study surgery. For some time he worked at the Westminster Hospital, where he came under the influence of Sir Stanford Cade. He obtained his FRCS in 1925 and returned to New Zealand in 1926, to settle in Christchurch, where he spent the remainder of his life. He was appointed assistant consultant surgeon on his retirement in 1955. He had held many other appointments, including the chairmanship of the consultation clinic of the Cancer Campaign Society from 1939 to 1955, membership of the Court of Examiners of the RACS during the 1940s, and Presidency of the Canterbury Kennel Club and the Canterbury division of the BMA. He organised and ran the first courses in postgraduate study in Christchurch Hospital. Retirement did not suit his active and independent temperament. He became Superintendent of the Mary Potter wing of Calvary Hospital, filling the post with characteristic care and compassion until 1978, when he retired again at the age of 84. He was an able surgeon, deft and meticulous, with a special interest in the surgery of the breast, the thyroid gland and block dissection of the neck. He published many papers on general surgical topics, mostly in the *New Zealand medical journal*. His last contribution was entitled *Death with dignity*. His interests included medical history - he had a fine collection of historical books and he was Chairman of the Canterbury Medical Library. As a keen yachtsman he was for many years Chairman and then Commodore of the Banks Peninsula Cruising Club. In 1918 he married Sophie Mary Adelaide Appleby, who predeceased him. He left a son, Patrick W Cotter, FRCS, FRACS, two daughters, eleven grandchildren, two of whom are doctors, and eleven great grandchildren.