2009.11.03
Grandson helps arthritic voter
Longtime Democratic party volunteer Betty Hosp had extra help Tuesday outside Roanoke County's Our Lady of Nazareth Church station, both in her work and in her voting.
She brought her grandson, R.B. Day, 12, who helped hand out fliers and also pressed her touch-screen voting selections for her, a task made more difficult for her by arthritis.
Although not old enough to cast his own ballot, R.B. may still be the youngest person in the area to wear a sticker that said, "I Voted" and, technically, mean it.
"I've been an active Democrat for 44 years and doing this [volunteering] for 30 years," said Hosp, a former teacher and current coordinator for Windsor Hills Democrats.
She saw R.B.'s participation as an impromptu civics lesson for her grandson, who is a 7th grader at Staunton River Middle School in Bedford County.
"You don't suddenly become a citizen the minute you turn 21," Hosp explained. "You have to train for years."
--Neil Harvey
