Off the I-15

I was number six at the St. Philip Neri Church poll station on Tuesday morning.

I love voting. And even though there wasn’t much on the ballot — don’t tell that to any of the candidates for First District Supervisor or the Assembly — I still walked up to the polling station in Lenwood smiling and ready to participate in democracy.

Even though I have only been voting for six years, my memories of going to the polls stretch back to when I was a child. I used to go with my dad to vote every election to the Ada Fire Station. Ada is a small town in Michigan about half the size of Barstow. The ladies working the polls knew my dad and came to know me.

When I turned 18, I went back to the fire station, still with my dad, but this time to vote on my own. The ladies, a bit older than the last time I had gone with my dad to vote, were just as excited to see me.

There is no replacement for voting at polling stations. Many people around Barstow vote by mail or absentee. I’m a fan of showing up and voting in booths.

I’ve already voted in two elections in Lenwood and feel like the people who work the St. Philip Neri Church station already know me. It might help that my name is in the paper most days, but it is nice to be greeted by “hellos” and “how are yous.”

When I voted in the 2004 election, I was studying in Germany and voted absentee. I sat on a bench inside the Erlangen post office and filled out my ballot. Sealed the envelop, dropped in the mail and felt like my vote was not going to count. No “hellos,” no “how are yous,” and no sticker.

Aaron Aupperlee | city editor

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