It was a day of ink at the Denver Public Library - but not in the way you're likely thinking.
"Tattooing is just kind of the conduit for me," explained Nando Mondragon. "It's not what makes me who I am."
Mondragon is the president of Certified Tattoo Studios and he brought his artists down to the Denver Public Library on Sunday for a fundraiser called "Books & Ink." Three-fourths of the proceeds from the event will all go right back into the library.
Folks waited in line outside of the Rodolfo "Corky" Gonzales Library along Irving Street near Colfax Avenue and Federal Boulevard before its doors opened Sunday afternoon. That branch of the public library holds special meaning for Mondragon.
"I am a young Chicano man who grew up in the city of Denver," he said. "Corky Gonzales was a huge impact to the city."
He said it’s fitting for this fundraiser to be held in a library and it all comes back to his love of books.
"If it wasn’t for books, I don’t know if I would be here today - alive even," Mondragon said. "And I feel really passionate about this."
Mondragon told 9NEWS he found solace in reading during a tough period in his life. At 18, he made decisions which led to six years in prison. In prison, books transformed his way of thinking.
“There’s one called ‘The Secret’ and I think in that book there is a lot of positive mental thinking,” Mondragon said. “And ‘The 48 Laws of Power’ is a book that really helped me understand things.”
He said he read hundreds of books and taught himself Spanish during his incarceration.
Mondragon feels people with tattoos face many stereotypes. The Denver native said he hopes to use this art form to both educate and give back to the community he loves.
“This is me paying back my debt to the city as well," he said. "I just want to start to give back.”
Over 120 people showed up to get tattoos at the library on Sunday. The branch had to start turning people away at 4 p.m. as they closed up the parlor.
