Pronounced Dakuwanga, is the shark god in Fijian mythology known to protect fishermen on the sea.
My dad is the biggest bear I know with the biggest teddy heart. He is most definitely the definition of “his bark is worse than his bite”. He was born in Fiji and moved to Powell River before his 10th birthday. Raised in Powell River, he lived a very outdoorsy life, taking an affinity to fishing and keeping it close to his heart for the rest of his life. After the 4 of us came along, we were raised in the same outdoor life he was with multiple fishing trips along the West Coast, especially Tofino.
This is why I have chosen the shark god to represent my dad.

A few years ago my dad had a stroke. In fact, he had multiple small strokes at the age of 54. He had just been diagnosed with diabetes.
At the time of the stroke, we had no idea what was happening. He had an intense headache, but no other signs of a stroke. Not until a month later, he got up and was repeating himself and couldn’t answer simple questions, we went to the hospital and he had a CT scan done. This is when we learned what happened; his motor skills intact, but his memory affected. Everyday numbers and letters had become a challenge. Along with the memory issues, he also suffers from neuropathy. All these issues were brought on by diabetes.

The design, created by The Only Fancy P, is a representation of what my dad means to me. He is strong and true power entity. The size and placement was key to this design, placed on the back of the shirt, just below the collar. This represents the always presence of Dakuwaqa and how he is always there, protecting, like my dad.

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