Late at night, in the closing moments of the last legislative session, lawmakers bounced $1 million-programs back and forth, trading on the remaining scraps of the Appropriations Committee table. A little bill — worth $20,000 — bobbed in the sea of paper, disappearing momentarily before emerging again, eventually to be fully funded.

The legislation to help restore and maintain the Bangor-based memorial of the USS Maine had no major debate or opposition. The chief fear of its supporters was that it might be forgotten in the rush to adjournment. Unlike the first USS Maine, which was sunk in Havana Harbor in 1898, the bill survived, and the money it represents will help to properly honor the men who served aboard that famous ship.

Much of the legislative work behind this achievement was done by Clif Deringer, the USS Maine centennial committee chairman, who probably never guessed the amount of work it would take to push this legislation through. Fortunately, he had help from several members of the Bangor delegation. They had seen firsthand the disrepair the memorial had suffered over the years and the progress that the centennial committee had made with the relatively small amount of money it had raised.

Public support for the monument, the history behind it and the tradition of USS Maines carried forward to this day aboard a Trident submarine of that name was obvious from the committee’s celebration last February. The two-day commemoration of the sinking of the Maine attracted residents from around the state, and dozens endured frigid weather to hear keynote speaker Adm. Malcolm Fages, commander of the U.S. Navy’s Northeast Region, describe the sinking in 1898 as “a solemn reminder that service to one’s country is often a dangerous calling.”

“Freedom is not free,” he said, “It’s paid for in blood by America’s youth. We need to remember the price they’ve paid.”

A comparably tiny cost to do that is keeping the monuments to these sailors shipshape. The legislative donation was a welcome donation to this campaign.