THOUGH she has been hooked on the family tradition of fishing since she was in second grade, it took years for 30-year-old Shashay Shaw to feel like others saw her — as a real fisherwoman.

Validation came recently when Shaw was included among beneficiaries of a fisheries production incentive programme launched by the State. She was one of the female fishers presented with a 26-foot single-engine boat during the ceremony held at Pagee Beach in St Mary on March 18.

“I am grateful for this as it means I can do more fishing. I am really over the moon as this has cemented me as an established fisherwoman,” a humble Shaw told the Jamaica Observer.

There had been a glimmer of the longed-for approval before. It came during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 when, working with a team that also included her dad, uncle, and mom, she caught a 110-pound marlin during the Portland Marlin Tournament, earning them third place.

“Catching the marlin that size, I felt cemented as a real fisherman,” said Shaw of the proud moment.

The third-generation fisherwoman still recalls how her love affair with the sea began.

“I drew my first fish pot at eight years old; I never looked back,” the Portland resident said with passion in her voice.

Shaw has tried to pursue other interests, and has an associate degree in psychology, but the open waters kept calling her back.

“I completed my degree during COVID-19 but I was unable to get a job – as you know jobs were scarce – but I didn’t get depressed or anything like that so I went to my first love: the sea,” she told the Observer.

She takes fishing seriously. As a member of the Lower Brian Fisherfolk group in Norwich, Portland, Shaw said she has participated in all the training sessions the National Fisheries Authority has offered in her region.

“I have been involved in the training since 2024, and once the ministry invites us to training I will make myself available,” she said.

She explained that these sessions have given her much-needed information that she uses daily when at sea. Being professionally trained helps Shaw keep calm when the unexpected happens — like the time a shark robbed her and her father of a huge haul.

“We were taking in our net and there were a lot of parrots and snappers [fish]. It was a big haul, and when we were taking in the last net a shark came flying out of the sea, cutting the net. It was as big as the boat. It was really scary as he kept swimming around the boat,” she recalled of the frightful day.

But Shaw does not allow fear to keep her from doing what she loves.

“Fishing is therapeutic, it brings me alive,” the young fisherwoman said with a broad smile.

During the recent fisheries production incentive programme, fisherfolk from Oracabessa, Annotto Bay in St Mary, as well as Bryan’s Bay and Hope Bay in Portland, were also recipients of boats, engines, and certificates.

Shashay Shaw with her first marlin catch