VIDEO TRANSCRIPT: Seniors hit polls Script
MYER LEE: When asked about why it was important to vote, the answer was simple for Patty Silverman.
PATTY SILVERMAN: I have two granddaughters. I’m very concerned about their future. I want them to be able to have the same freedoms I had years ago because I was one of those women that couldn’t get a loan to buy a car.
LEE: She brought her granddaughter, Ava. Ava had clear thoughts about what she wants for her future.
AVA SILVERMAN: Being able to do stuff on my own and not have somebody do it for me.
LEE: While Silverman voted at Cicero Elementary this afternoon to protect the rights of young people, retired firefighter Ronald Barling came with his dog, Molly, to also fight for youth.
BARLING: All the people in government, they’re put in there because people believe in them. And they’ve got to start doing what’s right for the people in their areas that they’ve been elected to and help these kids. Get them what they need.
LEE: Arnold Hansen cast his vote to protect veteran benefits. Everyone, he says, has their own reson to go to the polls.
HANSEN: I feel very strong that we need to get out to vote and have none of these rights taken away from us. We worked very hard.
LEE: In Cicero, at Cicero Elmentary School. Myer Lee, NCC News.
SYRACUSE, N.Y. (NCC News) — Patty Silverman said she was “thrilled to death” to have a woman running for president.
For that, she happily went to Cicero Elementary School to vote Tuesday. Her other reason for voting is more meaningful to her.
“I have two granddaughters,” Silverman said. “I’m very concerned about their future. I want them to be able to have the same freedoms I had years ago because I was one of those women that couldn’t get a loan to buy a car.
Her 11-year-old granddaughter, Ava, joined her at the polls. Ava Silverman couldn’t express what specific freedoms she wanted. She simply wants to be independent, she said.
Fighting for youth was a critical part of the work that Ronald Barling did as a firefighter. The retired fire chief helped feed and protect children for 49 years, working closely with child protective services to aid youth.
Two children — a 13-year-old who committed suicide and a three-year-old who was beaten to death — are unforgettable. They serve as reminders of what the government’s supposed to be doing.
“All the people in government, they’re put in there because people believe in them,” Barling said. “And they’ve got to start doing what’s right for the people in their areas that they’ve been elected to and help these kids. Get them what they need.”
After almost half a century of helping others, Barling sought some help for his PTSD.
Molly, his service dog, calms him when he has nightmares to help him sleep better. She was with him at the polls.
He paid a big chunk of $15,000 to get her — with no help from the powers that be, he said.
“Everybody get out and vote,” Barling said. “It’s your right.”