A Moment That Shaped A Mission

What Is It Called? How Do You Say It? Did I Say It Right?

It’s not everyday we come across a word we’ve never seen before. Something that makes us stop and reframe what we think we just read. The immediate tenseness that arises by coming up against a word not completely known like most others, an unlikely challenger reminding us the true power of words.

People are like that too, if you are lucky enough to find one.

Like all words, Fedafuh (Fae-duh-fuh) is completely made up. Born from a group of friends in high school, it was a secret word that meant absolutely nothing to anyone but us— a sense or adventure, resilience, joy— all in a sound.

It wasn’t much, but it was ours.

Within this Fedafuh group was Dominic, a soul like no other. For those who knew him, he was a kind and understanding friend, one who wanted to be there for others whenever they needed help.

Both as a Monarch and a Boilermaker, there was a spark within him truly unlike anything else- and whatever he chose to do with it, he was going to be great.

When Dom suddenly passed in 2018 from a concentric left ventricular hypertrophy (LVH), Fedafuh shifted into something heavier. It became more of a responsibility.

A quiet and powerful reminder that love, like words— hold meaning—and promises leave echoes long after you make them.

Carrying his life stories is a big job for such a big life, but so is the joy I’ll feel in sharing my own stories when we meet again in the stars. Dom was the best of all of us; always in service of others, meeting the world with relentless optimism and a steadfast belief in people.

That’s why I carry the name forward now. Fedafuh reminds me that the work we do—designing systems, telling stories, building with layers of intention—has to come from the same place it started: love, trust, and imagination. It’s a reminder to see the world with eyes unclouded by hate, to build with the same limitless wonder Dom carried into every single thing he did. And even after all these years he’s been gone, he’s still taking me to school.