A Hero Rises To The Occasion

How Fatherhood Changed Me: One Man’s Perspective

In honor of Father’s Day, we sat down with four families to get an intimate look at the heroism that lives within fatherhood. In this story Dwayne Decambre, husband and father of four, reflects on becoming a dad early in his life and his decision to make fatherhood a priority.

For me, fatherhood came early. When I first found out I thought to myself, “Wow, already?” It was a big moment for me. It put my character to the test.

I’m not the only guy that fatherhood impacts. Becoming a dad changes you no matter who you are. Sometimes it’s for the better. Sometimes it’s not. Either way, becoming a dad was the best opportunity to find out what I was really made of.

And I did.

Back then, soccer for me was everything. I had just been offered a scholarship and a spot on the team. It’s funny how you can have such a clear path set ahead, but life just has other plans in store. That’s when I found out I was going to become a dad.

Talk about man up. This was the real definition of that.

It’s not that it was easy to turn down the chance to play something I loved for my entire life. But really, it was the clear option in my mind.

I didn’t want to just be a dad though. Any man can have a child. But to really be a father, you have to be there for the long haul. And I wanted to be the best father I could.

Now four boys later, I know it was the best thing that ever happened to me. Fame and fans, sure it would’ve been awesome. But seeing my little men look up to me and think “my dad’s the best,” those are my real fans right there. And if I can do right by them, that’s winning for me.

Being there for them is an everyday thing. We do special things together, like going to soccer games. But really it’s just about us hanging out and making them feel like it’s the coolest thing ever.

If you catch us in the kitchen, you’ll know what I mean. My boys become my chefs. We make dumplings just like I did as a kid in Jamaica. Dylan’s the biggest, so he’s my sous chef. Dustin and Devin, they’re the line cooks.

“My dad is the best. He’s super cool and the best at making dumplings.” —Dustin

As a dad, you don’t really know if you’re doing the right thing all the time. It’s not like you have a scoreboard. I might not be the young, inexperienced dad I once was. But it’s still not easy.

All I can do is be the best version of myself, so they can see what being a man is really all about.

That means being there for my wife and for my kids every day. Not just as a provider, but actually physically being there for them every chance I get.

Almost twenty years and four kids later. I’m proud to say, I know what I’m made of.

Here’s to all the selfless dads like
Dwayne—who show us what caring men look like.
Watch how we celebrate these heroes:

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