Houston teen aims for high office

Student's passion for politics leads to governor's mansion

By Gina M. Scherffius

Houston resident Gary Lynn, left, and Texas Gov. Rick Perry pause during an appointment the teen requested to discuss issues concerning his school. Mr. Lynn and his mother, Andrea Lynn, traveled to Austin to meet the governor in his office in the capitol.

(Houston, TX) When Gary Lynn had concerns about the management of his school that he felt weren't being properly addressed, he did what few 13-year-olds would do: He wrote a letter to the governor.

He got a response that few people get: The governor invited him to the Capitol.

"Gary wrote a letter and asked me to mail it, and I figured that was all that would happen," said his mother, Andrea Lynn. "But a couple of months later we got a call to come up to Austin to meet with Gov. [Rick] Perry.

"With some people, Gary is shy when he first meets them, but with others, he shoots his mouth off like he's known them for 50 years," Ms. Lynn said. "That's what happened when we went to Austin.

"One of the things he said was, 'Is that your chair behind that desk?' The governor said it was. Gary told him, 'Take a good look at it. In a few years, it's going to be mine!'"

Ms. Lynn said the entire meeting was filled with laught er.

"I thought I was going to pass out," Mrs. Lynn said. "We didn't talk a whole lot about issues, but everyone had a great time." Ms. Lynn said the governor was very hospitable.

"It was great he took the time to meet with Gary," she said. "He and his whole staff were wonderful."

Gary, the youngest of four brothers, enjoyed meeting the governor, as he's enjoyed meeting many other elected officials-and athletes. His twin passions are politics and sports.

"He's a riot," Mrs. Lynn said. "Anything about those subjects, he'll tell you. He always has an opinion and has reasons to back it up."

Along with attending school and volunteering on Kinky Friedman's campaign for the Texas governorship, Gary is setting up an appointment to meet Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott, who has had a successful legal and political career and uses a wheelchair. Gary currently plans to major in sports law and political science at the University of Houston, whose campus he has already toured. Gary said he wishes he could skip high school so he could go straight to college and then begin his career. His television diet consists almost exclusively of football, basketball and news.

"He once told me, 'I'll be the first disabled president,'" Ms. Lynn said. "I told him he couldn't; Franklin D. Roosevelt had been. He immediately said, 'OK, so I'll be the second disabled president.'"

The young man's charm and persistence has earned him a bedroom full of autographed memorabilia from sports teams such as the Carolina Panthers and Houston Rockets and individuals such as Tiger Woods.

"He says, 'If I could meet Oprah and Michael Jordan, then my life will be complete,'" Ms. Lynn said. "'If I can fit Jack O'Neill in there, that would be great, too.'"

"He's very bright and he knows what he wants in life," his mother added. She said he's rarely intimidated by anyone, quipping, "What are they going to do to me? I'm already in a wheelchair."

Gary has an aide who attends school with him to assist him. With a diagnosis of cerebral palsy, he undergoes speech, occupational and physical therapy and requires adaptive aids. His supports are funded through Community Living Assistance and Support Services, a Texas Medicaid program, and provided through ResCare's EduCare Community Living subsidiary.

"The program is fantastic," Ms. Lynn said. "It's even going to redo our driveway to make it better for his chair. They've been so helpful."

A goal for Gary and his family is for him to be able to walk. He will undergo surgery on his legs soon, and plans to resume horse-riding therapy as soon as he heals.

Gary is willing to do whatever it takes to reach his goals. In the 2005 Houston Texans' Ultimate Fan contest, he took the stage and sang a song, competing against adults in a bid to win tickets to Superbowl XL.

"There was not a dry eye in the house," Ms. Lynn said. "He didn't win, but he was a good sport and said he'd be back next year. He plans to tell a lot more people to vote for him online."

Gary is so well-spoken and informed that "you can't believe you're talking to a child," said his mom. "I can't explain him." One thing Mrs. Lynn has learned from her son's session with the governor: "Now I know when we meet people to take a tape recorder!"