Junior Sophia Altavilla’s leg tattoo features four birds and a little girl holding four balloons — and each part represents someone in her family.

Altavilla is among the growing number of Baldwin students and staff who have tattoos. Many of those designs have stories behind them, just as Altavilla’s does.

Since she always wanted a tattoo of her whole family, coming up with the idea and finding inspiration did not take long, Altavilla said. She looked at designs online and several caught her eye, particularly one that featured a girl holding balloons that were in the shape of fingerprints.

She changed how the girl looked and added the birds and had the tattoo done in October. The four birds represent her grandparents, the fingerprint balloons resemble her mom, dad, sister, and brother, and the little girl holding the balloons is her.

“They just mean a lot to me so I had to show them that,” Altavilla said.

Senior Brandi Marsch has a tattoo on her right bicep to symbolize her close relationship with her Aunt Amy. The tattoo includes their favorite flowers: the lotus, daisies, and sunflowers. It also includes numbers to signify both of their birthdays.

It took about six weeks for Marsch to come up with the idea and she had it done two days before junior year began.

“I drew the tattoo myself, and it means a lot to me because it represents when my aunt and I started to talk again,” Marsch said.

Spanish teacher William Dodds has a tattoo on his left forearm that he got when he was in college.
Like Altavilla and Marsch, Dodds drew and designed his own tattoo. He drew a sleeve for his left arm that had several designs, but after getting the first design done, he decided against having the rest done.
The image is of a man in blue with a red star and blue circle around it. Dodds said that the meaning of the tattoo is up for others to decide.

Looking back, Dodds wishes he had gotten the tattoo in a different location because he thinks it looks unprofessional to have a tattoo on his forearm.

“The only thing I regret is the spot it’s in. I have to wear long-sleeve shirts every day because otherwise, it doesn’t look good,” Dodds said.

Senior Jaden Castine has had a tattoo above her right ankle since last year.

At first, the idea of the tattoo did not cross her mind, until her mom suggested matching tattoos for Castine’s birthday. Castine was surprised at her mom’s suggestion, but then she realized her mom was being serious.

The two then got together and found a picture they both admired. The idea of getting a tattoo together allowed Castine to reminisce on her strong relationship with her mom.

“Getting a tattoo is obviously a big thing,” she said.

“My mom has a big influence on my life since my dad wasn’t around. It’s just a reminder to be thankful for everything she’s done for me,” Castine said.