Tattoo shop helps fight domestic abuse
Event raises money as part of nationwide effort to help victims
Leilani Ysalgue wanted to be early for her Sunday morning family outing, so she had her mom, Ana Molina, and brother Justin Ysalgue standing at the door of Pastime Tattoo in San Leandro when it opened.
Within minutes, Leilani, 22, was lying on a massage table getting a sun put on the biceps of her left arm while Justin, 24, was in a chair by her head having a cowgirl needled onto his right arm. Their mom was getting a wreath above her left ankle.
It wasn’t on a dare, and it wasn’t for vanity.
“I try to get them to do things that are good for the community,” said Leilani, a San Leandro pharmacy technician, “and this is for a good cause, bringing awareness for domestic violence.”
The family’s entire outlay of $750 was going toward Still Not Asking For It, a nationwide Sunday tattoo-athon or what is known in the trade as a tattoo flash day. The six artists at Pastime were working for free.
“We want our customers to feel comfortable and know that we are allies if they are victims of sexual assault or violence,” shop co-owner Nate Burrow said as he inked a heart and flame design, known as a sacred heart, into the left calf of Von Champa, 33. “People coming to the event might meet people who’ve had similar events and struggles, and they can find friends, you know.”
This is the third year Pastime has been part of the event. Last year, it raised nearly $7,000 toward a national tally, which has topped $1 million in 10 years.
“We’re incredibly proud to be a part of such a meaningful movement and to see the impact it has had over the years,” coowner Ben Verhoek said.
Shops can designate specific recipients, and Pastime is supporting Bay Area Women Against Rape, based in Oakland. Raffle tickets supported by local restaurants and hair salons had already raised more than $3,000 before the first tattoo was inked.
Champa, of Oakland, has had 10 tattoos done by Burrow alone, but she was on the table for one more. “It’s important to show support for a good cause,” she said as Burrow went to work with what they call “the machine.”
“All right, Von. You ready?” he said at the outset. “Yeah. Let’s do it,” she responded.
“There is pain,” she said. “But the outcome is worth it.”
Ana Molina, 54, flew 10 hours from her home in Ponce, Puerto Rico, to be there for her daughter and son, plus his girlfriend, Gabby Zakas, who did her part with a heart behind her left knee for $200.
“You want to support them whenever they do something for a good cause,” Molina said, “and you want to let them know they can count on you.”
Her outlay for the wreath was $200, but as she jumped off the table, with Kool & the Gang playing “Get Down on It” on the sound system, she decided she had more to give to the cause.
“I want to get another tattoo right now,” she said, picking out a flower for her back. Then her son, Justin, an infrastructure engineer, decided he needed a frog. Then Gabby decided she needed a cactus on her calf. There was time. Pastime was open until 8 p.m. and there were 25 premade designs to choose from in the flash event.
The family was five tattoos into it already, and double figures were not out of the question.
“It’s just a question of how much money I have,” Molina said before heading across the street to the bank cash machine to find out.