Practical but incorruptible, Walter is a man who delivers to his people, according to Koocher. Once, for example, the school board and city council were invited to President Derek C. Bok's residence.

"While most of the guests were talking about international concerns, Walter was in the corner talking to John P. Reardon Jr. '60, director of athletics," says Koocher. "He later says to me, `You're all trying to change the world, and I'm working on the athletics department to get tickets for the fall.' "

Koocher remembers an incident when Walter Sullivan's efforts proved helpful. "I wanted to get Harvard Commencement tickets for a very special guest," says Koocher.

"I had gone through all the official channels to no avail. So I told Walter about my problem, and an instant later he pulls out a wad of yard passes for the event," Koocher remembers. " `You don't go through the bureaucracy,' he says, `You get them staight from the printer.' "

"They have done ordinary things in an extraordinary way," says Noonan. "The Sullivans have responded to the people's needs, and as the times have changed, they have been able to hold on to the continuity and adapt to reality."

Attributing his popularity and success to his accessiblity, Walter gives credit to "having a good wife and good children who give him the time to serve the community."

The mayor has "an impeccable political career, and he has provided an excellent example for the community," says City Councilor Thomas W. Danehy. "In politics today, people often look at public officials with a dim view, but not at the Sullivans. They get involved in a lot of issues, they have influenced a lot of youngsters and certainly have given the impetus for young people to get into politics."

"They do it because they want to do it," says Danehy. "All their services are done with anonymity, which is the purest form of charity available."

By providing recommendations and steering the members of his constituency to good schools and secure employment, Walter Sullivan maintains strong individual ties with the blue collar workers who form the backbone of his voters, says Danehy. "He is good at it, and adheres to the high calling of the political office."

His constituency also includes a large number of Black families, says Koocher.

"I remember when Walter and Saundra Graham were both running for the City Council. When you passed by Saundra's grandmother's house, you could see a Walter Sullivan sign in her window," says Koocher. "He has always served the Black community."

Since "the door is open" at the mayor's office, anyone who visits has the opportunity to see him, says Noonan. Residents often send in observations and comments about issues or policy, which the mayor reads and personally responds to.

"We say yes to 97 percent of the requests we get from the community," says Noonan. "We hate to say no, so we rarely say no. The mayor takes an active interest in the community, such as the Boy Scouts, St Paul's Parish Church and other fund raising orgainizations."

The Sullivan lineage in Cambridge politics has been "good for the community, creating a sense of commitment and stabiltiy in the neighborhood," says Danehy. "They are a close-knit family that inspires and rallies around one another."

The mayor's sons, Michael A. Sullivan, Middlesex County's assistant district attorney, and Walter J. Sullivan Jr., a Boston College law student, are both considering a future in politics, says their father.