A six-year-old Taupo girl has a permanent reminder of her father’s love, after he got a cochlear implant tattooed on his head to match her own.
Charlotte Campbell had her first implant put in her left ear at the age of four in 2013, and just had one put in her right ear yesterday.
Her father, Alistair Campbell, had a tattoo of the implant done on Tuesday and planned to surprise Charlotte with it when she was discharged from Auckland's Gillies Hospital this morning.
Mr Campbell posted a photo of the image to Facebook for family and friends to see, saying the tattoo was his way of showing Charlotte he was always there to support her.
“We only put it on to show our family and friends and just to show our love for our daughter and next thing you know it’s all over the world.”
The photo was first shared to the Facebook page Life of Dad yesterday and has since received more than 80,000 likes.
It was then shared by The Lad Bible, where it has also received more than 60,000 likes and over 2500 shares.
Mr Campbell, who got the idea online from an American man in a similar situation, says he is overwhelmed with the response the picture has received online.
"I thought it would be a fitting tribute to her and to show her love and what she goes though in her journey and our journey over the last three years," he said.
And Mr Campbell said it wasn’t a decision made lightly.
"It has to be something with a lot of meaning to get it and this one has a lot of meaning to me."
Charlotte also has a hearing-impaired brother who has two hearing aids.
The family have driven from Taupo to Auckland more than 30 times over the past two years to The Hearing House where they receive therapy and assistance in helping Charlotte to hear.
Hearing House fundraising and communications manager Mary Jane Boland said she was also amazed at the response to the picture.
"I think the family never expected it but its great Alistair has done this as a way of supporting his daughter.
"Without the cochlear implant, she wouldn’t be able to hear at all," she said.
The Hearing House is a non-for profit organisation which relies on donations to stay running.
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