USMC Veteran Elmer Ugarte's Tattoo Story
From the time he could remember, Elmer Ugarte wanted to be a Marine. He says he didn’t get his first tattoo until it actually meant something to him.
“It meant something to me when I got shot.”
He has four military tattoos:
- An eagle, globe with an anchor
- A bullet casing with the carabiner that is said to have saved his life, along with the date he was shot and “you only live twice” in Arabic
- And another that says, “in death there is life.”
- A grim reaper
He plans to get more ink to honor his fallen brothers.
“I’m not who I was anymore. I’m a completely different person. I’ll never be who I was before I got shot.”
Elmer still struggles with PTSD and says he wants other service members to know they are not alone.
“Sometimes it’s hard to admit it. There’s a lot of people willing to help you; you just have to give them a chance.”