Bovard mom believed one vote makes a difference

Ann Rahl was the kind of person who liked to vote early — but not too early.

“She never wanted to be late voting, so she was always among the first 10 to vote (at her polling place),” said her son, Daniel Rahl. “You couldn't tell her how to vote. She voted strictly on what she believed in.”

She worried that if she arrived too early, she would be asked to be a poll worker, he said.

Mrs. Rahl's voting record earned her a place in the Pennsylvania Voter Hall of Fame, which recognizes people who have voted in every November election for at least 50 consecutive years.

“She considered it a privilege to vote,” her son said.

Ann L. Rahl of Bovard died Monday, Feb. 12, 2018, at Easy Living Country Estates, Hunker. She was 95.

Born in Tide, Indiana County, on July 23, 1922, she was a daughter of the late Robert and Mary (Dosen) Lisac. When she was 2, the family moved to Bovard.

Mrs. Rahl was a civic-minded person who instilled the importance of voting in her children, her son said.

She was inducted into the Voter Hall of Fame in November 1997, making her one of 292 Westmoreland County residents to be inducted.

“When she first told me … I didn't doubt it because both her and her brother, it's something they both instilled in us. One voice made a difference, as far as she was concerned. She believed in that wholeheartedly,” he said.

A lifelong Democrat, she was inducted by former state Rep. Tim Krieger, a Republican.

“Anytime he ran for re-election afterward, the big joke in our family was that we would vote for him because of what he did,” her son said.

Mrs. Rahl enjoyed going to the McDonald's near the Westmoreland Mall every weekday morning, especially after her husband, Kenneth, died in 1994.

“It definitely was for the fellowship. She really enjoyed doing that,” he said. She kept going until she stopped driving after her 94th birthday.

Some of the restaurant managers took to calling her “St. Ann” because of her good nature.

“She was the person who always did the right thing,” her son said. “I wish I could be more like her.”

She is survived by her children, Dolores “Dee” Eicher of New Stanton, Kathy Marcinko of Brandenton, Fla., and Daniel K. Rahl of Greensburg; seven grandchildren; 11 great-grandchildren; and three great-great-grandchildren.

Prayers will begin at 9 a.m. Saturday at the Leo M. Bacha Funeral Home, 516 Stanton St., Greensburg, followed by a funeral Mass at 9:30 a.m. at Blessed Sacrament Cathedral, Greensburg. Interment will follow in Greensburg Catholic Cemetery.

Memorial contributions may be made to the Bovard Volunteer Fire Department, P.O. Box 81, 2 Washington St., Bovard, PA 15619.

Stephen Huba is a Tribune-Review staff writer. Reach him at 724-850-1280, shuba@tribweb.com or via Twitter @shuba_trib.