Hawks tell the stories behind their tattoos

Victoria DiNaro, ’17

Victoria DiNaro has four tattoos: one on each thigh, one behind her ear, and one on the right side of her rib cage. She got her first tattoo Thanksgiving weekend freshman year of college in 2013. It is a song lyric from the band The Maine’s song “Waiting for my Sun to Shine.” The quote, “Strength will find you sooner than you ever thought it would,” is located on her left thigh.

The song is from the band’s album “Pioneer,” an album that is of sentimental meaning to DiNaro.

“[‘Pioneer’] came out at a good time,” she said. “I was stressed out with school, SATs, mental illness… [The Maine is] a huge part of my life. I’ve worked for them, and I’ve seen them all over the East Coast.”

DiNaro interned for 8123, the artist management group that manages The Maine. Her third tattoo is another lyric by The Maine: “raw and invincible.”

DiNaro’s parents were skeptical at first of her getting a tattoo, but eventually they accepted the idea.

“I had been asking for a tattoo since I was a junior in high school, and they were completely against it,” DiNaro admitted. “Then freshman year of college they were like ‘We’re gonna go with you, we’re gonna approve it.’ My mom went with me. She was an art major in college, so she helped look at fonts and those kinds of things, even though I knew what I wanted.”

Kevin Kuhl, ’18

Kevin Kuhl got his first tattoo in the summer of 2013 when he was 17 years old.

“My mom had to sign off on it,” he said bashfully.

Kuhl’s parents were accepting of his tattoo because both of his parents have them.

“It was never a big deal to me,” Kuhl said. “My mom got a couple before I was born and my dad got them soon after. It’s not like I was getting something ridiculous. It’s not nonsense; it means something to me. They were absolutely fine with it.”

His first tattoo is on his right calf and is of the Blink-182 logo, a band he has seen in concert four times. Kuhl’s second tattoo is his favorite of the two. It is located on his left bicep and is of Space Mountain from Walt Disney World.

“I love Disney World. I always did,” Kuhl said. “I know I’m almost 21, but I still love Disney World. When people recognize it, it’s the best feeling in the world. But it doesn’t matter if they don’t. I think it’s cool to ask people what their tattoos mean.”

Kuhl also emphasized that anyone can get a tattoo if he or she wants one. “You don’t have to fit a tough guy stereotype,” Kuhl said. “They’re an extension of who you are.”