Manchester Dems Honoring 3 Party Members, Longtime State Official

MANCHESTER, CT – Manchester Democrats will honor three local party members for their outstanding contributions to the community and present a special 'thank you' award to former Secretary of the State Denise Merrill at an event slated for May 18.

The Manchester Democratic Town Committee will be hosting the 45th Honoring Friends Celebration at the Elks Lodge, 30 Bissell St., starting at 5:30 p.m. that day.

Those being honored at the event are:

• Lifetime Achievement: Malcolm Barlow
• Honoring DTC Members: Jerry Bidwell and Dolores Kelley
• Special Thank You: Former Secretary of the State Denise Merrill

Tickets are $50 per person and can be purchased by contacting Michael Pohl at mikepohlk1000@gmail.com

Arrangements for advertisements in a program book for the event can be made by contacting Maria Cruz, at mariawcruz@yahoo.com or David Dumaine, at drtarkus@yahoo.com.

"The Honoring Friends Celebration provides an opportunity for Democrats and others who care about our community to come together and celebrate meaningful and lasting work being performed by dedicated friends and neighbors," Manchester Democratic Town Committee Chairman Michael Pohl said. "This is an important local tradition that speaks to the positive role so many people play, every day, to make Manchester an outstanding place to live, work,
and raise a family."

He added, "Malcomb, Jerry, and Dolores – this year's honorees – are people who deserve
our respect and gratitude. "They are remarkable citizens who care about the future of this community, about the well-being of all our citizens, and about the quality of life we can all lead here. In addition, we will honor former Connecticut Secretary of the State Merrill, who also severed as Majority Leader of the state House of Representatives, for her many positive and lasting contributions to our state. Denise has always been a good friend to the people of Manchester."

Background on Honorees

Lifetime Achievement:
Malcolm Barlow
Activist, philanthropist, and attorney, Malcolm Barlow has deep roots in
Manchester and in the Democratic Party. He believes in Manchester and its
ongoing process of providing its citizens with excellent public education, town
services, and Democratic leadership.
Malcolm was born in Manchester and is a 1961 graduate of Manchester High
School. He is also a 1965 graduate of the University of Connecticut at Storrs,
where he met his wife, Susan, volunteering at the Connecticut Daily Campus
student newspaper.
While working full time as a reporter and photographer for The Manchester
Herald and other regional publications, he attended UConn Law School, and
graduated in 1977. He established a solo practice in 1978, has been practicing
for 45 years, and his practice now focuses on estate planning, probate, and
issues confronting the elderly. He is an acknowledged expert on probate and
elder law matters.
Over the years, Malcolm has put his legal talents to work on behalf of the town
and numerous community organizations, notably The Manchester Land
Conservation Trust, the Manchester Historical Society, his church, CAST
Children’s Theatre, Manchester Interfaith Housing Corporation (MISAC), Orford
Village Housing Development Corporation, the Odyssey Community School, and
others.
In the 1980s, he did work for the Office of the Town Attorney, and represented
Manchester on a range of issues. He also served for more than two decades as
the attorney for the Manchester Housing Authority and played a key role in
supporting efforts to expand housing opportunities, especially for Manchester’s
seniors.

Over the years, Malcomb played key roles on the campaigns of several
Democratic candidates for state legislature, including those of the late Town
Chairman Ted Cummings, Jim McCavanagh, Mary Ann Handley, and Joe
Hachey. He also served two terms on the Board of Education.
One of Malcolm’s special loves is the outdoors. He says this grew out of hikes
with his father and his time in the Boy Scouts – Troop 47 at South Methodist
Church. .
Malcolm says that in 1984, when he bought his office property at 172 East
Center Street, he learned that his mother, Osee Rock, had lived there with her
parents in the 1930s. Osee eloped with Francis from this house to get married.
They returned to Manchester never to leave again.
Malcolm and his wife, Susan, have lived at 627 Spring Street since 1987. Susan
also grew up in Manchester and is the Manchester historian. Her father, John
Cronin, was a labor leader, a Democrat, and a member of the board of the
Housing Authority of the Town of Manchester.

Honoring DTC Members
Jerry Bidwell
Jerry Bidwell has called Manchester home for more than three-quarters of a
century, during which time he raised a family, had a remarkable career, served
his community, and made a lasting contribution to the work of the Democratic
Town Committee.
Born in Hartford, Jerry’s family moved to Manchester in 1945, and he is a 1962
graduate of Manchester High School. While a student there, he took a part-time
job at a new Stop & Shop that opened on Middle Turnpike, which led to a long-
term career with that company.
He moved through the ranks at Stop & Shop to become the manager of several
large locations, and later served as the Manager of Personnel/Human Resources
and Labor Relations for the Connecticut division of the company.
In those years he found time to earn a Bachelor of Science Degree from Albertus
Magnus College, New Haven.
After retiring from Stop & Shop, Jerry became a real estate agent, and he is still
active with Century 21 Classic Homes.
Jerry and his high school “sweetheart,” Sandy, were married 58 years ago in
1965. They have four daughters, 10 grandchildren, and three great
grandchildren.

Jerry’s “good works” have touched may parts of our community.
He served as a church representative to MACC, and was active in a shelter run
by that organization. He was a member of the St. Mary’s Church Vestry, and
was Minister of Communion to shut-ins for St. Bridget’s Church. He was also an
advocate to Stop & Shop for the CT Association of Latinos in Higher Education.
Jerry was also a member of the Board of Directors for New Seasons, an
organization that provided 24-hour home care and day care support for the
disabled. He was part of a team that led efforts to successfully merge New
Seasons into Network Inc., a larger organization with more resources to assist
people with needs.
Jerry has been an active member of the Democratic Town Committee who works
hard every election season to bring out the vote for Democratic candidates.
Dolores Marie Kelley
Dolores Marie Kelley has led a remarkable life as a public servant, an executive
secretary, a community organizer, an active and highly respected member of the
Democratic Town Committee, and a wife and mother.
Born in Cambridge, Mass., Dolores graduated from Cambridge High and Latin in
1960.
She began her professional career with the City of Cambridge’s Health
Department, and then relocated to Washington, D.C., where she took a position
with the federal government.
While in Washington, she met her husband, Lewis Kelley, and in 1972, they
moved to East Hartford.
In Connecticut, she began a second career, as an Executive Secretary with
Heublein (IDV), serving in that role from 1974 until retiring in 1998.
Dolores and Lewis purchased a home in Manchester in 1977, when her husband
opened an opened an Allstate insurance office in town.
She is a member of Saint James Missionary Baptist Church, New Britain. She
has served on numerous church committees and as a Girl Scout Leader.
A major focus on Dolores energy has been ensuring educational opportunities for
students of color, through her work with the Greater New England Association of
Black School Educators, and the Lou Irvin Historically Black College & University
Tour Consortium.

Dolores was also a member of the Student of Color, (SOC) Parent Committee,
which advocated for Black and Brown students in the Manchester School
System. With Dolores’ help, SOC has been the driving force for major changes
within the Manchester Public School System, and has also positively impacted
schools throughout Connecticut.
Dolores has also been an active member of the Democratic Town Committee,
and devotes great energy to supporting the party’s candidates.

“Special Thanks”
Denise Merrill
Secretary Merrill, who represented Mansfield in the Connecticut House of
Representatives for almost twenty years, and served as House Majority Leader,
was elected as Connecticut’s Secretary of the State in 2010. She was re-elected
in 2014 and 2018 and served until resigning her post in 2022.
She was Secretary for Connecticut’s most consequential and challenging
elections, including the October snowstorm and Hurricane Sandy, attempted
foreign interference in 2016, and COVID-19 in 2020.
As Secretary of the State, Denise was a leader in making voter registration and
casting a ballot more convenient and obstacle-free for every eligible Connecticut
citizen.
As Secretary of the State, Denise also streamlined business filings, digitized
records, and improved the business search functionality in an effort to make it
easier for businesses to start and expand in Connecticut.
Denise also brought a lifelong passion for civic engagement to the Office of the
Secretary of the State. She demonstrated a commitment to ensuring that
students learn how their government works, how they can get involved, and how
they can help connect their communities to Connecticut’s civic life.
Denise is a graduate of the University of Connecticut, is licensed to practice law
in the state of California, and is a classically trained pianist. She lives in
Mansfield, and her family includes her husband Dr. Stephen Leach, and his two
sons, her three children, and six grandchildren.