By Brian Denitzio
Reporter Staff

The morning sun is already high in the sky and the temperature on Dorchester Avenue is rising steadily. Despite this fact, there are voters to meet. So rather than sit down in the air-conditioned confines of say, a coffee shop, Ed Flynn opts to discuss his candidacy on the move. And so we set off from the Katherine Clark Apartments where Flynn had that morning delivered coffee and doughnuts, and make our way down the avenue, towards Freeport Street.

He stops to chat with passersby, a city worker sweeping the street, pokes his head into businesses, and, for a quick moment, boards an MBTA bus to introduce himself.

In between the palm-pressing, Flynn talks about his experience, the issues, and for a bit, how being the son of a former mayor affects his bid for at-large city councillor.

Flynn was born and raised in South Boston, where he resides today in the neighborhood's lower end with his wife, Kristen, and his daughter, Caroline. The couple expects their second child any day.

Straight out of Don Bosco High School, Flynn joined the Naval Reserves. He recalls South Boston of his youth as a very patriotic neighborhood, and says that steered him towards the armed forces.

"The people I looked up to in life were the people who had served in the military," says Flynn.

He was on reserve duty while volunteering for Bill Clinton's presidential campaigns in 1996 and 2000. He was appointed to the Labor Department where he served for five years before a stint with the Massachusetts Committee on Criminal Justice. After September 11, Flynn volunteered for active duty.

Flynn says his service in the military has been the defining experience of his life.

"The best thing that ever happened to me was enlisting in the Navy," says Flynn.

And it may in fact be the defining element of his campaign. On his lawn signs and campaign literature, Flynn has, above his own name, the words "Democrat" and "Veteran." The issue of homeland security is a key plank in Flynn's platform. He talks at length about the experience he's had, attending Navy War College and working on security for President George W. Bush's inauguration this past January.

"We hear that much has changed since 9/11, but what is the role of neighbors and neighborhood organizations in our security? Have we been properly educated?" Flynn asks rhetorically.

Flynn argues that the city needs to examine thoroughly the way that it approaches homeland security. He believes that all police officers need to be trained in homeland security initiatives. Intelligence, he says, needs to be compiled and scrutinized for patterns so as to inform law enforcement's efforts to secure the city.

Housing, education, and substance abuse are other issues Flynn touches on during his jaunt down Dot Ave. his stances on all three informed by his experiences. As a lifelong resident of the city, Flynn says he sees the middle class being squeezed out by high prices and rents. He proposes rent control for veterans and seniors to help them stay in their neighborhoods. He also opposes the residency requirement for city employees because of the high cost of living.

A substitute teacher at Charlestown High, Flynn advocates for walk-to schools.

Having witnessed substance abuse problems in his neighborhood and in his own family, Flynn says he will push for on demand substance abuse treatment.

"People fighting a drug dependency can't wait for treatment," says Flynn. "There's a responsibility for colleges, universities, and hospitals to play a defining role on this issue."

While life experience shapes his views on the issues, it's his last name that seems to immediately shape the way voters view his candidacy.

Up and down the avenue, Flynn extends his hand to voters who, upon hearing his name, remark on his resemblance to his father, former Boston Mayor Ray Flynn. Stopped in his tracks for the moment, Flynn tells them his dad is doing fine and promises to deliver hellos before mentioning that he's running at large.

With such a recognizable last name, the association is inevitable, but Flynn stresses that he's running his own campaign on his own issues. He says the decision to run was made primarily in consultation with his wife, but says he has his parents support.

Flynn's name recognition, coupled with other factors has some race watchers predicting a strong showing for the first time candidate.

"I think he's going to do very well," says Felix Arroyo, Jr., son of at-large councillor Felix Arroyo and an organizer for the service employees union. "He has a naturally high-voting base [in South Boston], he has a real common bond, he benefits from name recognition and has life experience."

As the field's only veteran, Arroyo, Jr. says, Flynn could energize that voting bloc. In what figures to be a close race for the council's final seats all this could produce a strong finish for Flynn.

The candidate himself isn't making any predictions. He's content to plod along, meeting voters on the Avenue.