AROUND this time nine years ago, Sina Kami was going through one of the hardest phases of her life, dealing with her eldest daughter Tae Kami’s battle with a rare form of jaw cancer.
Sadly, 11 days away from today in 2008, 15-year-old Tae lost her battle to the deadly disease.
And more than a week away from her ninth year anniversary, Mrs Kami has always found it hard to tell the story of her family’s journey and how after Tae Kami died, the family was only left with $36 in their bank account.
The mother-of-four said over the years she always tried to avoid talking publicly about her late daughter as it was always hard for her.
“The past nine years has been a challenge, but a lot of blessings came with it,” she said with tears rolling down her cheeks.
“That fund ($36) we left it in the bank account in New Zealand and the last bill that came was more than $10,000.
“We looked at it, this was after the funeral and we were that broke.
“We came back to Fiji relying on our next pay and we thought where to get the money from. We had this friend in Canada and they have been following Tae’s story and they sent us a note on how they can help us.
“So we explained to them and they said to send us the invoice and it was cleared just like that.
“She was a child with a faith so strong. It was just a dream for a dying child for her mom and dad that we will use her song ‘Walk on, walk strong’ to help other children.
“We didn’t know that the conversation we had that night will become what it is now.”
At first, the couple thought they would only be able to realise their late daughter’s dream in their home country in Tonga.
“That conversation was just, ‘Yes, Tae we’ll do it’,” said Mrs Kami.
However, on the first anniversary of her death in 2009, the family decided to sit down and do something to commemorate Tae’s passing.
Mrs Kami said the whole family sat down one day and watched Tae’s videos before she died to listen to what she was saying.
Then they realised that she had left the tool.
“She told us, ‘Mum, Dad be happy because I left the tools’,” said Mrs Kami.
“She left her journals, her song, she left a lot of her interviews and we took that out and started the walk.”
Tae died at about 11.35pm on August 16.
Her mother’s last words to Tae was “fly away Tae, fly away”.
To this day this line still echoes in Mrs Kami’s mind whenever she speaks about her eldest daughter.
An emotional Mrs Kami described that moment as a mother, one would never forget.
Such has been the case for her even after nine years since her daughter’s death.
“That moment when you think of the times that you looked after her all these years, God decided to take her,” she said.
Meanwhile, before Tae’s death, she penned a song which they have also used to name the organisation titled, Walk On, Walk Strong (WOWS).
A line in the song is, “…the storm won’t last too long. Walk on, walk strong.”
Mrs Kami believes that this was one of the messages left behind by her daughter that helped her through the years.
“I think that’s coming the 16th of August we still have to walk on, walk strong.”
On August 16, 2009, the family conducted the first Walk On, Walk Strong (WOWS) campaign in Tonga and also in Fiji.
“That was the beginning of WOWS,” said Mrs Kami.
The organisation was set up in memory and accordance of Tae’s wish to her parents to set up a resource centre to assist children suffering from cancer and their families.
WOWS Fiji started off working closely with the Fiji Cancer Society until they were registered as a separate charity in 2015 to focus only on children and FCS looked after the adult cancer patients.
“To be honest I never thought that it would get this far,” Mrs Kami said.
“All we know was that she was an amazing child and the love and support from the people when she was still alive was tremendous.
“We did fundraising for her treatment and when we got all that and yet she passed on. We realised that if people did that for our child, why don’t we do that for other kids.
“This is like giving back and saying to the people and parents who are going through a tough time with their children that we know what it’s like.”
Mrs Kami said the support by the Fijian public helped shape WOWS Fiji to what it was now.
To commemorate Tae’s death every year, they have always organised events involving children with cancer in conjunction with the WOWS Fiji Resource Centre.
This year the anniversary also falls on the month declared for Child Cancer Awareness.
Mrs Kami said she never thought that the awareness month would fall on the same month Tae died.
And if she could give advice to parents facing the same situation she went through nine years ago, Mrs Kami said it would be for parents to accept that their child was sick.
“We need to get to the hospital, find ways and we have our ways to always fall back on,” she said.
“But accepting it is hard for us parents, but we have to accept it and walk with your child no matter what.
“The journey is going to be long, it’s going to be long. Don’t listen to people who say that when your child is sick, that is a curse that’s why it has happened.
“Accept it and find what other solutions that can help your child.”
Mrs Kami said by working together, people could help children suffering from the deadly disease.
