Watch CBS News

Colorblind firefighter overcome with emotion from seeing the American flag's colors for the first time

Emotional surprise moves firefighter to tears
Colorblind firefighter moved to tears seeing the American flag's colors for first time 01:36

It's the most treasured symbol of our country. So imagine if you couldn't see the red, white and blue of the American flag. That's exactly what happened to Douglas County, Georgia firefighter Spencer Caradine.

"I never knew that there was a different red in my eyes," he said.

Caradine is colorblind and he only recently found out because of his fellow firefighter, Jordan Gardner. 

"When I realized he couldn't see what I saw, I wanted to be able to fix it," Gardner said.

Gardner ordered him a pair of special glasses and planned a big surprise at the firehouse on the Fourth of July. Gardner presented Caradine with the glasses before leading him outside to see what the American flag looks like, in beautiful, vibrant color. 
 
Overcome with emotion, Caradine looked at the flag first, then looked at everything else. As for Gardner, he said seeing that look on his friend's face was "the best feeling in the world."

Caradine said, while he can now see Old Glory in a new way, that doesn't change what those stars and stripes stand for.

I've seen the videos but, today, I got to experience it first hand. One of my best friends has never seen what the world really looks like until today. Spencer always said the first thing he wanted to see in color was the American flag so....we made it happen. None of us are emotional people but this morning got the best of all of us. Congratulations, Spence! #enchroma #enchromaglasses #enchromareaction #Firefighter #Brotherhood #ColorBlindFirefighter If anyone has more pictures/videos please post them! With everything going on I forgot to get a picture of what he was looking at 😅

Posted by Jordan Gardner on Wednesday, July 3, 2019
View CBS News In
CBS News App Open
Chrome Safari Continue
Be the first to know
Get browser notifications for breaking news, live events, and exclusive reporting.