A photo of three Maine roofers who paused while the national anthem played at a high school next to their job site has gone viral.
The photo, taken Saturday, Oct. 14, shows the roofers with their hands across their chests as the national anthem was played at Waterville High School during a football game against Old Town.
The men could hear the anthem play due to the proximity of the home to the school.
Michelle Lyons Cossar was watching her nephew play in the game and took the photo.
She looked over when she heard another person say, “Hey, look! They’re not kneeling,” she said.
“When I looked over the fence, I saw them standing and respecting the flag even though they didn’t have to,” she told WMTW News 8. “I just thought the world could use a little more of that right now.”
“They had no idea, anyone, even noticed but our community did,” Shanon Gurski Dixon told WMTW News 8. “Several people had taken pictures of this patriotic act of kindness.”
The men work for a company in Oakland, but were doing an independent job Saturday, Dixon said.
“Our little city would love to have them recognized,” Dixon said, before the photo went viral.
The women hope a national personality, like Ellen DeGeneres, will see the photo and honor the men for their patriotism.
“I just thought the world could use a little more of that right now,” Cossar said.