Olivia Eve

The Story Behind the Name:

Olivia Eve the Shark was adopted on behalf of collective donors in memory of Olivia Eve Wigon, who left this world too early.

Olivia was attending the University of Miami where she doubled majored in Marine Affairs and Human and Social Development and was a member of the U Miami’s Shark Research & Conservation Program (SRC), and a leader of the university’s Hillel community. Her passion was to create a safer and healthier world for sharks and all ocean life. She was a graduate of Wellesley High School (’16) and The Island School (Spring ‘14) in Eleuthera, The Bahamas. Olivia was a global citizen and world traveler visiting six continents where she studied, worked, developed deep friendships, and immersed herself in the local cultures.

As an SRC intern, Olivia spent a lot of time in the field and lab, going above and beyond her intern requirement. Indeed, she earned the top performing SRC intern for the spring semester. While saddened, it brings comfort to know that over the last few months and weeks she was thriving as an SRC intern and thoroughly enjoying her time. She was excited, motivated and proud to be a part of our SRC team, working towards a common goal with amazing people.

Olivia will continue to inspire and live on in her loving family including her parents, her sister, Dorothy, and brother, Sam. She is also dearly loved by her grandparents, Robert and Virginia Hanlon; her aunts and uncles, Kathy and Tony Moschella, Chris and Nancy Hanlon, Dan and Melissa Hanlon, Jerry and Liz Wigon, Ken and Rebecca Heller, and Michael and Leslie Wigon; her cousins Cailah, Brianna, Julia, Anthony, Max, Maddie, Izzy, Sophie, Madeleine, Zach, Ross, Leigh, Amelia and Nora (her two favorite little cousins) and her countless friends around the world. Olivia was predeceased by her grandparents, Samuel and Rachel Wigon and Dorothy Hanlon, and her uncles Peter Hanlon and Stuart Wigon. Olivia was a force for good in all her communities and on the environmental scene with a special focus on our oceans. She had so much left to give this world. Olivia’s last mitzvah was being an organ donor and spreading the joy that radiated from her to even more people.

Adopt-a-Shark: For information on how you can contribute to our shark conservation research by adopting and tracking your own shark, please visit our Adopt a Shark page.