WARREN - The apple doesn't seem to fall too far from the tree in the northern Trumbull County farmlands.
Even farther north in Ashtabula County, the grandson of Trumbull County Recorder Diana Marchese is testing the political waters, following the top politicians of the day on Twitter, preparing for law school and absorbing everything he can in the political arena.
In fact, 16-year-old David Thomas of Austinburg was appointed to that township's Zoning Board last month, following in the footsteps of grandfather Dominic Marchese, who was among a handful of Johnston Township residents who first tangled with the zoning issue in the Trumbull township years ago.
''I'm definitely interested in this and how it impacts the community I live in. It doesn't really matter that I'm not old enough to vote yet,'' said David, who prefers David over Dave so he isn't confused with the Wendy's Restaurant founder.
David, a junior honor student at Grand River Academy, started attending trustees meetings last fall and learned of a vacancy on the zoning board.
''I had my doubts whether they would want me,'' he said. ''One of the trustees checked with the county prosecutor's office and found that the only qualification was to live in the township.''
David's voice gets excited when he talks about the hottest zoning issue at the moment in Austinburg. It involves development at the busy Interstate 90/state Route 45 interchange.
''We're already one of the busiest between Erie and Chicago. Currently, there are some industrial sites there, but there is interest to build more motel rooms. They might not be jobs that pay as much as the industrial plants, but jobs are jobs and they're needed,'' he said.
David plans to majoring in political science in college and wants to attend law school after that.
He was making the rounds Thursday night with his grandmother, rubbing elbows with the politicos at the Warren Dems Club and then sitting in court Friday morning to hear Prosecutor Dennis Watkins argue against bond for a defendant charged with his 14th drunken driving violation.
''I think I've decided on law rather than medical school. I had an internship last summer at Ashtabula County Medical Center and let's just say it wasn't for me,'' David said.
Instead, the well-rounded teen who is raised by two educators and enjoys golf, tennis, church and the environment, is shooting for a job in the future as a page in the U.S. House of Representatives.
''We're not pushing him to go to Washington. It might be too far from home,'' said a protective Marchese, who was showing David the ropes from inside her office last week.
''I still think of him as the grandbaby even though he was the first for Dominic and I. And he weighed nine pounds, five ounces,'' she said with a smile.
