Phillip Thompson, son of Sen. Cherie Buckner-Webb, D-Boise, says, “I’ll always be a dedicated fan of the iPhone,” after a FaceTime session with his mom allowed him to spot signs of a stroke and rush her to the hospital; you can read my full story here at spokesman.com. Thompson, 37, said it happened last Sunday, when it had been getting late and Buckner-Webb hadn’t yet had her daily visit with almost-3-year-old Zaida, Thompson’s daughter and Buckner-Webb’s only granddaughter. “Those two are joined at the hip,” Thompson said. “Her and I had been playing phone tag all day. … We FaceTime so they can see each other and talk when I don’t have time to run over there.”

But, he said, “While we were talking, first she looked like she was very tired. But then she messed up my daughter’s name twice, and that’s never going to happen.” He immediately grew concerned. “I said, ‘Mom, are you all right?’” he said. “She couldn’t quite enunciate or pronounce things properly. … Some of her responses weren’t on point. You could see the right side of her face looking not as it should. So I flew over to her house and took her to the hospital. So you’ve gotta love the iPhone.”

Buckner-Webb was admitted and treated right away. “She’s doing quite well,” her son said. “We had her to the hospital in no time flat. They kept her a few days. … She’s speaking much better now. Her strength’s pretty good. She’s just working through it now. Everybody expects a full recovery.”

Thompson said Buckner-Webb is going through physical therapy now. “She got seen in no time flat. Her cat scans were good. .. So if you have adults who live away, you need an iPhone for ‘em. I’m serious – that’s huge. … When you can see someone’s face, you can see those symptoms. … You can actually see if something’s amiss.”