Not my 94-year-old mother. I am so proud of Mary Grace Burke, of Lemont. She called about her voter registration, expressing her inability to get an ID and get to the polls.

As a lifelong voter, she was determined to have her voice heard. And lo and behold, she is eligible for an absentee ballot by law, as follows: “A qualified absentee voter is not required to provide proof of identification if the voter is entitled to vote by absentee ballot under the Uniformed and Overseas Citizens Absentee Voting Act or by alternative ballot under the Voting Accessibility for the Elderly and Handicapped Act."

I hope my mother’s story inspires other eligible voters to apply. The elderly are not victims who are unwilling to take responsibility for their own lives. They already did.

Jacqueline Burke Sywensky

State College