Bruce Wihongi was born and raised in New Zealand, one of five children, loved by their Mum and Dad, Raywynne and Patariki Wihongi. He played a variety of sports in his youth, and generally had a heck of a lot of fun.
After completing high school, Bruce set out along a path towards Mechanical Engineering. This was interrupted by a two year overseas “tiki tour”, that took in parts of Asia and lots of Europe. Plenty of life experience was enjoyed during this time, and after returning to New Zealand, Mechanical Engineering didn’t seem so interesting.
So off he went on another path, having miraculously been accepted into the Physiotherapy School at the Auckland University of Technology. So began a “settling down” period, much different from gallivanting around the world. It culminated in 1992 with Bruce becoming a Physiotherapist.
One might have thought that he would stay in New Zealand…….
However, a shortage of Physical Therapists in the USA, and restless feet were a recipe for more adventures.
Bruce landed in Detroit, Michigan on July 4, 1993, believing foolishly that the fireworks were somehow to celebrate his arrival into this new country. The initial intent was to call the USA home for two years, after which the master plan involved returning to New Zealand, opening a clinic, working and retiring there. Since 1993, he has worked in different outpatient Physical Therapy clinics, being a Clinic Director for the last two companies.
He has three children. The two older ones live in East Lansing. The baby just graduated from high school and will attend Michigan State University in the fall. Coming from New Zealand, Bruce has had a lifelong love affair with the sport of rugby and is an ardent fan of the All Blacks, the national rugby team of New Zealand, and current World Champions. Over here, he has played for, coached and now supports the Detroit Tradesmen Rugby Club. He is still likely to play in 2 or 3 “Old Boys” rugby tournaments around the country each year. Bruce likes to hunt in Michigan’s great outdoors, and enjoys anything to do with water in the summer.
He has developed his own style of treatment, taking on board techniques from different PT gurus, and being open to learning new innovations in the PT world, as well as using common sense and the vast experience he has gained from treating all manner of patients and conditions over the past 25 years.
Bruce would like to thank the many people along his journey, who have contributed to where he is today.
Kiwi PT 