Tip:
Highlight text to annotate it
X
Delanie: I'm Delanie Walker, number 82.
Tight end for the Tennessee Titans and this is My Ink.
People always ask me why I got so many tattoos
and I tell them my body is like a canvas and it was blank
and I just wanted to mark it up.
My tattoos to me are very positive, culture, places I've been, my family.
I have Pomona, my home town, is tattooed across my chest
and whenever I take off my shirt,
everyone's gonna know where I'm from.
I don't want to hide it.
I'm from Pomona.
We here at Pomona High School, home of the Red Devils.
This is where I grew up, this is where I went to school,
this is where I learned how to play ball.
I think this is where I got my character from.
It don't get no better than this, you know?
My 11th year I remember recruits coming to the school
and it was like, you have opportunity to play in a big time college
and maybe go on to the pros.
Out here at my house, you'll be able to see my crazy family and how we live.
It's all about family, check me out.
Really I'm a family guy, you know.
My family always been my backbone and they will 'til the day I die.
(people talking)
Anything that relates to me or my family, I get tattoos about it.
I got my first tattoo when I was 13 years old
and I'm like I know if my mom see a tattoo, she going to blow up.
So I can only do one thing and I got her name.
She was a little upset but she was happy that I got her name.
So you know, it kind of went away real fast.
Vicy: Delanie's a momma boy but he won't admit to it.
Delanie: I have my grandma and my grandparent's faces on my arm.
This is showing how much I love them
and the pictures were so beautiful I had to put it on my body.
Queen: One of my granddaughter's said, "Grandma, Lenny got a tattoo of you."
I said, "Oh he got his name written on him."
She said, "No, he have a picture of you and granddad."
I said, "What?" (laughs)
Delanie: And my little son, right here.
He got the rug burn, my little nephew done scraped him up though.
I have a tattoo of my son on my forearm right here.
He's the reason why I'm doing what I'm doing.
Everything I'm doing is for him.
Make sure he have a better life when he grow up.
Hey you going to see what up to the camera?
My son nine years old and he will not get a tattoo at 13.
No matter what, it's changed a whole lot.
He got to wait.
Vicy: All my family is great, we always been close.
But since my sister passed we've even been closer.
Delanie: Alice, aka Peaches, that's what we called her
and my uncle Bryan, one of my biggest supporters.
They came to watch me play in the Super Bowl.
They were driving back to their hotel and my auntie and uncle
were actually rear ended by a drunk driver and they were killed instantly.
I was mad.
I was upset.
I was broken, I felt alone.
But luckily I have family to help me go through that.
Because it can't be prevented.
Today we're going to a MADD event in Long Beach.
MADD stands for Mothers Against Drunk Driving.
We'll hear some stories, I'll share my story and then we'll go from there.
Man: I want to welcome everyone to Mothers Against Drunk Driving
to talk about their experiences.
Blonde Woman: When I was 16 my mom was killed by a drunk driver.
Delanie: Like I said, you can always turn something
that was negative into positive and that's what I'm doing
by joining MADD and spreading the message that what happened
to my auntie and uncle, to try prevent people from drinking and driving.
I just can remember my family getting together and crying
and wondering how could this happen to our family?
Woman: We appreciate all of you giving back
and partnering with MADD to share this message.
Delanie: I'm going to do everything possible to spread this message
because I don't want to see anything like that happen to anyone.
Woman: Everyone say MADD.
Group: MADD.
Delanie: I think about them all the time, probably every day.
When I do Peaches and Bryan's tattoo, there's going to be a...
it's going to take some time.
When putting them on my body that just shows that I'll never forget them
and whoever else sees my tattoo is going to understand
and remember them as well.