[Dawn Riggins]

Hello Megan,

Thanks for the warm welcome.  I actually meet my fisherman back in March of 2020 and he tried hard to get me to date him, I would always say things to him like “you have been on a boat with men too long” or “I think you hit your head on the boat” but he asked me to be a shareholder in black cod season and then he really liked working with me and we laughed alot so then I started doing other things with him and the next thing I know the accountant is texting me and calling me boss lady.  My guy was on the boat, so I had to get on the phone right away and find out what was going on.  Even the accountant said he had never been willing to ever share the boat with anyone before and “many women before me had tried”.  I said all I want is my fisherman to come back safe every time.  And he said “Well then that must be why”.  So, when I called my fisherman, he said he gave me 49% ownership because he loved doing business with me, that is made it funnier.  What he didn’t tell me is all the stuff that comes with ownership. So, since we didn’t share a bank account, I am responsible for so many things I didn’t realize I had to worry about.  Which was fine when he was around because we would work the money out but with him being in Alaska, it has put a big strain on me financially that I wasn’t expecting with repair bills.  This has me constantly, trying to find money.  Unlike my fisherman, who has money in the bank from doing this for 19 yrs, I have had to drain my own personal business to fund this Alaska trip and Crane repair and now I am trying to come up with money for the new hydraulic system.  So even though our first crab check is set to make it next week, the mechanic needs paid.  All these stresses are causing daily panic attacks.  I am usually really good with stress and my own job is very stressful, but due to some major fights we had on his way to Alaska I got to see a side I wasn’t used to, and I just don’t want to see that stress in him again so that causes a lot of them as well.  I think we are working together with our communication better and that shouldn’t happen again but there is just so much I don’t know and didn’t know to be an owner that I am finding out along the way.  We are working with the Northwestern right now in Alaska and will be on the Discovery channel Deadliest Catch this April, so I became a boat owner the first week in October and by the 2nd week in November I was getting told we had to get everything ready to go to Alaska and on zoom with Sig Hanson.  It was literally like being thrown to the sharks as someone who has never, been a part of the fishing industry.  And as of last night, we are now leasing Black Cod quota too from Jake Anderson, and I don’t even know what that means.  I am way out of my element for sure.  But when my fishermen is excited, I am just excited with him.

As for the anxiety of having a fisherman on the Berring Sea, he has sent me photos of the Northwestern next to him and the Alaska King with 18′ waves over them.  Just today he sends me some photos as well.  I already can’t sleep when I don’t hear from him before bed, I am getting better and have started to not panic of him until it has been over 18hrs, but it is a lot.  Something I hope I will get used to so I can get a good night sleep.  Thankful, I am not trying to also raise young kids still.  My children are grown.  I just love him so much that I can’t imagine anything happening to him.  Money means nothing if he isn’t here on this earth with me.

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