JUST A YOUNG MAN!

"Let no man despise thy youth..." (from I Timothy 4:14)

Yesterday I voted for the first time as a resident of the Town of Webster. I had registered shortly after moving to Webster and there's been a Town election or two, but since I really don't know ANY of the Webster politicians or their positions I opted to pass on those.

We vote at the Webster Town Hall, which is a very fancy and impressive building. At first I was not even sure which entrance to use, but I noticed one where several cars were parked. There were no political signs outside or anything like that. Standing just outside the entrance was a young man who approached me. My title for this piece will be appreciated by anyone who knew the late Ken Lavers. Ken passed away last May; I think he was 84. Whenever Ken met ANY man under the age of 70, he would smile and enthusiastically proclaim, "Just a YOUNG man!". Well, this guy who met me just outside the Town Hall door really WAS just a young man!

It turns out he is Ryan Fattman of Sutton who will be our new State Representative due to redistricting. He asked me if I would take one of his handouts on my way out of the polls and I said I would.

We voted in a big room. There were a lot of poll workers, but not a lot of voters at all. (This was around 6 p.m.) I had no idea which Precinct I live in. They had listings of all Precincts and which streets belonged to which Precinct. After checking out a few lists, I discovered I live in Precinct 1. I went through the process of getting a Republican ballot and casting my vote for Ron Paul. Yes, Mitt Romney carried Massachusetts with 72% of the vote, but I am still glad I did my part for Ron Paul. There was a place to vote for Republican Town Committee members, but there was not one person listed! In Framingham, there were always several people on the list for Republican Town Committee.

On the way out I did stop to see Ryan Fattman (incidentally, he is NOT fat!) and got one of his cards. Nowhere on his card did it state his party affiliation, but I'd suspect he's a Republican. He listed the causes he believes in, and I'd say I agree with all of them. He's been a State Rep. for awhile. He is just new to represent Webster. Ryan's got to be one of the youngest State Reps. I give him a lot of credit. I also was impressed he took the time to stand out in the cold and meet voters. Of course, he was not on the ballot this week, but he will be on the ballot in November.

So, that was my experience of voting in Webster!