Candidates rally for impromptu pre-election breakfast

Pete Fontaine
Posted 11/4/14

There was a rather unique and impromptu breakfast Saturday morning at Peter’s Coney Island Restaurant on West Shore Road. And it all happened, Warwick State Sen. William “Bill” Walaska mused, …

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Candidates rally for impromptu pre-election breakfast

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There was a rather unique and impromptu breakfast Saturday morning at Peter’s Coney Island Restaurant on West Shore Road. And it all happened, Warwick State Sen. William “Bill” Walaska mused, “because it rained.”

Last Friday afternoon, Walaska received a call from Sheldon Whitehouse, Rhode Island’s Junior United States senator, asking the Warwick Neck resident if he’d like to join him walking around the district.

“Naturally, I said yes,” Walaska said. “But then it rained Saturday, so we talked and he said let’s have breakfast. I told him about this great place where my wife and I go and it’s good.”

Thus, the time was set: 10:30 at Peter’s Coney Island. However, the breakfast turned out to be a Who’s Who in Warwick politics.

Walaska, who had also scheduled a walk Saturday afternoon with State Sen. Joseph Shekarchi, called Ward 5 Warwick City Councilman Ed Ladouceur and State Representative candidate Joseph Solomon Jr. to tell him he was having breakfast with Whitehouse and invited them to stop by Peter’s Coney Island.

Ladouceur and Solomon did after attending two previous early morning meetings. Joining in were Warwick City Councilwoman Camille Vella-Wilkinson and campaign volunteer John Cooney.

The breakfast also included former State Sen. Stephen Alves from West Warwick and Seth Klaiman, district director for U.S. Congressman James Langevin and a number of Walaska’s family, including his wife Marsha.

For more than an hour, Walaska and Whitehouse greeted and talked with a number of area residents who are regulars at the West Shore Road eatery.

“This is pretty nice having breakfast with a United States senator,” Walaska said. “And remember, he doesn’t have an election for four more years.”

Whitehouse, though, really enjoyed the morning and catching up with many Democratic constituents.

“I came here to wave the flag a little bit,” Whitehouse said. “This has been a very good show of support, and I wish all my fellow Warwick Democrats well in Tuesday’s election.”

Walaska, who is the Rhode Island Senate Pro Tempore, wasn’t sure if his previously scheduled walk with Shekarchi and Vella-Wilkinson was going to take place, given the rain and cold temperatures.

Meanwhile, Ladouceur and Solomon offered, “It sure was nice to have Senator Whitehouse with us this morning; this was a much appreciated opportunity.”

As for Peter Stevens, who owns and operates Peter’s Coney Island Restaurant: “I’m sort of happy it rained; it was nice having a much larger crowd than normal during our Saturday morning breakfast.”

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