Claremore Tattoo Artist Giving Back To All During Breast Cancer Awareness Month

October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month, and a Claremore tattoo artist is hosting a fundraising tattoo-a-thon to raise money for cancer research.

"It is Breast Cancer Awareness Month, but I don't want to focus just on that," Rich Wallace said.

He's opened the fundraiser to ribbons for all the various kinds of cancer, or, as he says, anything people are dealing with - like domestic violence, PTSD, almost anything.

There's room on his ribbons for dates or names.

This is the second one of these events Rich has hosted.  2008 was the first.

"I did 477,I believe, in 17 hours," Wallace said.

This time, he's bringing in a second artist to help. They'll spread the work out over two 12-hour days - Thursday and Friday.

He's also bringing professional boxer and MMA fighter Nikki Burleson and Emily Dukote from Oklahoma City; they'll be available for pictures and autographs.

Wallace said, "This is my month to give back."

His father died of cancer in October when Rich was 10 years old, so October is Cancer Awareness Month for him.

The tattoos are $40 and the proceeds will go to St Jude's Children's Hospital.

The fundraiser is this Thursday and Friday from 8:00 a.m. until 8:00 p.m. at Secret Ink in Claremore. You can find more information here.