'Tis the Season for Ink

I love your tattoo; what does it mean?

Everything.

On National Tattoo Day 2025, TAPS invited you to share your ink and the story behind it on social media. Your responses blew us away. The viral post raised a good point: Memorial tattoos not only serve as a permanent, deeply personal reminder of someone we lost, but each time we share the story behind the ink, it’s an opportunity to speak their name and tell it again. These symbolic tributes to love, life, and service are as unique as the person who inspired them.

One of a Kind
“I love you more than life itself and I miss you every moment that we are apart” — a line from a letter Courtney Wood received while her husband (then fiancé) was overseas. She explained, “After he passed, I found the letters and knew I wanted this on me forever. It reminds me every day of how much we loved each other.”

Few things are more unique than our loved one’s handwriting or fingerprint, making these tattoos truly one of a kind, and members of the TAPS Family have incorporated personal touches as a reminder of deep and lasting connection. Jennifer Allgaier bears “I love you and miss you,” the last thing her husband wrote to her. On Amy Farmer Bishop’s wrist is: ILTWYLM, short for I love the way you love me — how she and her husband signed everything.

Tara Hulett carries a beloved reminder of a Valentine’s Day card from her dad: “Love always, Daddy.” Amber Leigh Martin received a letter from her son while he was in basic training; he signed it, “Love, The Favorite Child, Kalin.” Amber shared that Kalin and her older daughter would jokingly argue over who was the favorite, and now she has a permanent reminder of Kalin’s humor.

Kate Kastle memorialized a Post-It her husband left on her desk weeks before his death: “You’re my favorite. – Jake.” After a year together, Jolaine Locke’s husband bought her the perfume, Beautiful, and attached a sticky note above the label that read, “Because you really are.” Jolaine shared, “I don’t know why I kept it, but with all the moves, it never got damaged. Ben passed away after 17 years together, so I took the note in and got it tattooed.”

Lauren Buckland bears two unique tattoos: “You’ll never walk alone” in her husband’s handwriting, and a bouquet of four poppies — a tribute to their military connection. One of the poppies is a drooping bud holding her husband’s fingerprint. Michelle Marine incorporated her husband’s fingerprints by forming them into a heart-shaped tattoo.

It’s not one of a kind, but Better Merritt Fry and her family have a four-of-a-kind tattoo on their arms: a replica of her son’s birthmark. Though it isn’t his handwriting, Ana Hernandez will forever be reminded of the last text message she received from her son. And a reminder doesn’t have to be written or typed. Diane Travis, her son, daughter, and four Marine brothers of Jason Lee Davis, Diane’s son, were all tattooed the night before Jason’s funeral with a Jack Daniel’s label recreation containing Jason’s details. Diane shared, “We live in a small town about 40 miles from the Jack Daniel’s distillery. This was a fact Jason told everyone.”

Symbolism
Memorial ribbons, birds, badges of accomplishment, they’re all reminders of connection and strength. Janet Harpool Crane’s tattoo is a reminder that she completed an Ironman race on Sept. 29, 2019, Gold Star Mother’s Day. She paired it with her son’s signature and his birth and death dates, making sure “the dash” was included.

Robin Bethel was visited by a cardinal right before her son’s death. “It perched on the top of our lilac tree,” Robin shared. “His signature is on the tag.”

Sue Johnston, Lisa Stacks, and Bonnie Page all acknowledge their loved ones’ strength in the face of illness. Sue’s husband suffered from progressive supranuclear palsy due to Agent Orange exposure. She shared the inspiration behind her hummingbird tattoo: “With PSP, on an MRI of the brain, you will see the shape of a hummingbird.” Lisa has a tattoo of a non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma ribbon, which her brother succumbed to after burn pit exposure. Bonnie’s tattoo — an infinity symbol, anchor, and pink ribbon — represents the infinite love she shares with her husband, their Navy service, and both of their battles with breast cancer.

Chris Meeker and his wife also both served in the Navy. After respecting her wishes for a burial at sea, he designed a tattoo that incorporated her coordinates and their love for each other and the sea. Angela Prather has “12,645” tattooed on her wrist, representing the number of days her son lived. Sharron Stidfole traveled to Williamsport, PA, her husband’s hometown, on his first angelversary to be tattooed with his plane’s tail number and a gold star.

Wrapped in Meaning
Each of these tattoos (and many more) is more than ink. They’re stories of lives carrying on — not just about what was lost, but what remains. It’s not always easy to narrow a full life, an entire relationship, into one tattoo. When that happens, as Surviving Mother Cheryl Huff explains, “I couldn’t decide on one, so I got a half sleeve!” Brett Strickland's sleeve with an angel and phoenix is still in progress; for now, his son’s portrait is on his forearm, always close to him.

This season, and always, let these special tributes start conversations, help you feel closer to the hero you lost, and, in the words of Lauren Buckland, serve as a reminder to us all that “even in moving forward, we’re never far from the ones who shaped our hearts.”

PHOTOS: TAPS Archives