FAMILY- When I was a kid...: Notable locals look back at childhood

Larry Sabato

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COURTESY OF LARRY SABATO

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FILE PHOTO BY WILL WALKER

Contrary to popular belief, presidential elections haven't always been of the utmost concern to UVA professor and political pundit Larry Sabato.

"This was taken on Election Day 1952, when Dwight Eisenhower defeated Adlai Stevenson for the first time," he says. "I'm embarrassed to admit I didn't care one whit about that election."

That said, he explains that this snapshot carries with it a symbolic message for kids.

"I hope this photo can serve as an inspiration to other apathetic Americans," he says. "You, too, can turn your life around and become a good citizen. You just have to grow up and take politics seriously."

Patricia Kluge

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COURTESY OF PATRICIA KLUGE

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FILE PHOTO BY JEN FARIELLO

Multimillionaire entrepreneur Patricia Kluge sees a lot of who she would become in this portrait of her four-year-old self.

"I see my sense of wonderment about life, the innate sense of hope and joy, the questioning of the things in life," she says. "I still have all those qualities."

She recalls her childhood as a happy one, and she credits the family that raised her.

"I just remember being adored by my parents and grandparents," she says. "I was the oldest child of two eldest children, so I had a supportive environment and had a joyous time."

Steve Helvin

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COURTESY OF STEVE HELVIN

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FILE PHOTO BY JEN FARIELLO

Though he was destined to become General District Court Judge for Albemarle County, Steve Helvin says you wouldn't have known it if you knew him in eighth grade at Lane High School.

"I was not a special kid. As with most students, I could have been a lot better," he says. "I didn't win any Nobel Prizes."

His honor says he actually felt more at home on the gridiron as a tackle for the football team.

"We got beat a lot," he says, "but those are still a lot of happy memories."

Rita Dove

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COURTESY OF RITA DOVE

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FILE PHOTO BY JEN FARIELLO

Former U.S. Poet Laureate Rita Dove says she didn't wait until her teens to want to be in the driver's seat.

"I must be about six months old in this picture," she explains. "I loved my stroller because once I got wheels, I tore around the house."

In Dove's case, though, this vehicle was much more than a means for mere cruising.

"I was quite voracious," she says. "It amazed me that there were so many different things in this world; I wanted to eat up experience."

Mac McDonald

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COURTESY OF RITA DOVE

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FILE PHOTO BY JEN FARIELLO

Though he wouldn't come to Charlottesville as the "Voice of the Cavaliers" for many more years, sportscaster Mac McDonald says his broadcasting career began at the Little League baseball fields in Des Moines, Iowa.

"I used to interview my teammates," he explains, "A guy would hit a home run and when he would come into the dugout I'd grab a bat and put it to him like a microphone and ask, 'So, how'd it feel to jack one like that?'"

That's not to say McDonald didn't have some game of his own.

"This is the picture from when I made the all-star team when I was 12," he says, "I pitched and played first base, and I was a stud. I had a 40 mile-per-hour fastball and a 25 mile-per-hour change up."

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