Patriotism takes root at Decatur home

So she and her husband, Steven, painted a 25-by-36-foot American flag on their front yard at 1657 W. Olive St.

“I think we went over a little bit, because I needed more space for stars,” she said.

The banner is proportionate to the standard flag with 50 stars, seven red stripes and six white stripes.

However, the couple draped the flag over into the neighboring yard. “Thank goodness that the house next door is empty,” Hancock said.

Creating the flag took three days to complete with a self-imposed deadline of July 1. The couple used exterior paint and paint used to mark utilities. It isn’t expected to quickly wash away, Hancock said. “Apparently there’s a good chance I might have killed my grass,” she said. “I didn’t want to mow this summer anyway.”

The motivation was also to honor veterans. Hancock has several family members who have served in the armed forces. “And there’s just a lot of cool Americans doing cool stuff,” she said.

Neighbors have watched a slow parade of traffic travel down the street since the flag was painted. A few visitors stopped to take a picture with the artwork.

"It's been kind of a mark-up in the traffic," said Connie Mathis, Amanda's mother and neighbor. "People seem to enjoy it. All the comments are positive."

With some confusion, Mathis watched her daughter set up the yard before the painting began. "This is really big," she remembered before the flag was finished. "It just raises that level (of patriotism) up, and it just makes you feel good."

The family has been following the Relay for America flag run with 250 runners carrying a flag across more than 3,000 miles, from the Pacific Ocean in California to the National Mall in Washington D.C.

“I thought that was so awesome,” Hancock said. “I can’t get through one of those videos without crying.”

Hancock also has been happy with her own patriotic contribution. Neighbors and other community members are learning about the flag and making passes by the home giving positive responses.

“It’s a big birthday number,” Hancock said about the 250th anniversary. “During the 300th, I’m sure I won’t be in enough shape to paint the yard.”