STANDISH, Maine — Tuesday is an odd day for a football game.
Many high school games in Maine were postponed following the mass shooting in Lewiston on Oct. 25.
Among the 18 victims who hailed from various school districts around Maine, the shooter killed Peyton Brewer-Ross, a 2001 Westbrook High School graduate; Josh Seal, Bonny Eagle class of 2006; and Aaron Young, a freshman at Winthrop High School.
With heavy hearts, all three school districts prepared for games and planned to honor their classmates when football, soccer, and field hockey contests resumed.
Each ticket sold at Westbrook and Bonny Eagle's Tuesday home games would benefit the families of the people lost from those two towns, the schools' athletic directors told NEWS CENTER Maine. The Winthrop High School Boosters posted on Facebook photos of the boys' soccer team wearing socks with Young's initials on them, and another post thanked opponent R.W. Traip Academy for raising money in advance of the match.
Gardiner's high school athletics page posted a photo of the football team standing in a circle at midfield, locked arm-in-arm with Skowhegan's team.
"This! May we never lose sight of what’s truly important in this world," the post read.
Westbrook Athletic Director Beth Murphy celebrated her 35th year in the district. She said she knew Brewer-Ross and showed us his yearbook photos, including his stint on the school's feared wrestling team. She, football coach Sam Johnson, and students unfurled a long banner that read "Love 4 Lewiston." Murphy planned to hang it on a fence near one of the end zones before the school's critical playoff matchup against Deering. Students had also painted a sign, spelling, "Rest in peace Peyton-Brewer-Ross."
"I’m hoping we all come together – both sides – and pay this tribute to Peyton," Murphy said. "We’re gonna donate the gate money to his family. I think that’s important. I think Deering is with us on this too. The outcome – you know, great if whoever wins – but I think it’s important for us to bring ourselves together."
Community members, including Windham's police department, shared photos of freshly painted fields with messages for Lewiston or specific victims.
Windham's field crew painted "Lewiston" in blue across midfield. Though its football team was on its way to Bonny Eagle for a football tilt Tuesday night.
Bonny Eagle Athletic Director Eric Curtis and Facilities Director Adam Thibodeau showed us the art on their football field that took all afternoon to complete.
"Lewiston Strong" was spelled out in big block letters, facing the home stands. To the left, Thibodeau – assisted by the district's paint robot – touched up a massive, filled-in, state of Maine with a heart on it. On the other side, "JS" displayed Seal's legacy in the town.
"I’m honored to be able to put this out on the field for him and for the family, and for Lewiston as a whole," Thibodeau said.
It’s just paint on a sign, just paint on a field, and just a football game on a Tuesday night.
But sometimes things mean much more.