My Daddy: HAPPY FATHERS DAY...ALAPATI IAKOPO "SAILI" PURCELL

My Dad: What can I not say about this man, who is my father, my hero, idol and much more. I wanted to give a little tribute to my father for this Fathers Day. I figured I write a little blog about him and all that he has done for our family. My father is the second youngest of 12 children. He was born in Malaela, Aleipata Upolu Samoa. His parents are Ropati and Faagalo Purcell. My father married my mom in 1971 and had their first child (Robert) in 1972. I came along 2 years later in January of 1974. For all of my 35 years of life, my dad has always worked hard to provide for our family. No matter how tired and sick he got, he always was working. I remember growing up as a little girl, when my dad was less active in the church(LDS Church). He would always come home with treats or toys for us.. we especially loved it during the fourth of July season when he'd come home with boxes of fireworks. Once my dad became active again in church, he was the greatest dad I could've ever asked for. He took our family to the Hawaii Temple and we were sealed as a family for Time and All Eternity! That was one of the best days of my life. Throughout my teenage years, he always reminded us of how important school was for us to complete and graduate. One of the greatest things I remember most about my dad while growing up was when he'd tell us that he didn't want to see us bring home a boyfriend till we were like 20 something. That stuck with me, cause I didn't take one home till I was 30 years old...LOL, you think I was traumatized?! NOT!
My dad is very passionate about our culture and I love that about him. I love that about him because, it keeps me in tune with my culture and I appreciate my culture because of the things he has taught me about our Samoan Heritage. I've learned thru him that being "afa tasi" (half breed) doesn't mean your "palagi" (white/caucasian)...it means you have the best of both worlds/cultures. Appreciate both your backgrounds and understand it. Do not be ashamed of your samoan side just because you are proud of your palagi side, vice versa.
My dad is a humble, loving, sometimes hardheaded (what samoan man isn't?) funny man. Some people may not like his strong personality at times, but he tends to grow on them once they get to know him. My brothers and sister and i love to hear my dad tell a story, cause he gives us a great laugh when he tries to tell it in English (FOB). I love my daddy and I thank Heavenly Father every day for blessing me with a man like him as my dad.
So, this Fathers Day, I want to tribute this Blog to him and tell him I LOVE YOU, DADDY...and HAPPY FATHERS DAY! I pray that he will continue to have many more strong, healthy years of life.