Of all the times Laken Tomlinson has stood for the National Anthem before kickoff of a football game – high school growing up in Chicago, Duke University or the last two seasons with the Detroit Lions – never will it have more meaning than on opening day of the 2017 season.
Two more members of Tomlinson’s family became United States citizens this offseason, and Laken is in the process of being the last member of his immediate family to join them.
It was an emotional moment for Tomlinson’s family when his sister, Chelsea, and brother, Juhvane, became citizens in a ceremony in Chicago last month.