Senate hopeful pounds pavement around state
The New Haven Register - Sunday, January 10, 2010
Photographer: Peter Casolino

Merrick Alpert waves, right, as he leads a group of supporters, above, as they walk along Route 34 from Orange into West Haven Friday.  Merrick, who is seeking the Democratic nomination to run for the U.S. Senate seat currently held by Christopher J. Dodd, walked 70 miles in 5 days through Connecticut towns, visiting with community leaders and residents.  For more information on the campaign, visit http:// merrickforachange.com

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Since announcing his candidacy in May, Merrick has been traveling the state, meeting and speaking with Democratic Town Committees, concerned voters, and diverse community and business leaders - with the specific intention to better understand the unique challenges that face local communities, and the ways in which the needs of Connecticut's citizens can be better met.

Concerned with current efforts to rebuild our struggling economy, Merrick commenced a walk through central Connecticut in early January, to bring attention to the fact that the people of Connecticut are hurting, and that the powerful in Washington and those on Wall Street are unaware of their hardships.

Merrick began his 80-mile Hurting In Connecticut march along US Route 5, at the Connecticut-Massachusetts border and walked approximately 15 miles each day, stopping along the way to visit with various small businesses, food pantries, soup kitchens, senior centers, homeless shelters, hospitals, family resource centers, health care centers, and community based nonprofit organizations.