Katarina Foliaki

“My name is Katarina Foliaki. My father comes from Onotoa in Kiribati. I grew up on Tarawa. I chose this story to keep the memory of my dad. He had just passed the year before. This story is a way of keeping his memory alive. It is something I would treasure. I will share it with my grandchildren, who won’t know him. Maybe it’s a way of saying good-bye to him.”

Tamau Dad

Gruelling training, oppressive heat, mosquito infested jungles, and the every-present threat of enemy attack made every day a physical and emotional struggle.

“I decided on this story the morning of the workshop because I didn’t know I would be participating. If I had had more time, I would have made a map to show the route my father travelled from Kiribati to Fiji. I would also have had photographs sent from Kiribati.

The photograph of the young men in my digital story is hanging in my lounge.

Making this digital story was fun. I was familiar with the technology because of my job. What was memorable was sharing this story with everyone and seeing how other people were not shy about sharing their personal stories.”