Cyril Thomas (Tom) Collins was a consultant surgeon at the Wellington Hospital. Born on 28 April 1915 in Auckland, he was the son of Cyril George Collins and Mary Theresa Collins née O’Connor, the daughter of a building contractor. Both his father and grandfather became the Auditor-General of New Ze

'Sealy' (as he was widely known) was born in Randalstown County Antrim, Northern Ireland. He was the only child of William and Agnes Wood. His mother, a New Zealander, was one of the "First 50" nurses to serve in the First World War. She returned to New Zealand with Sealy when he was two years old a