Before Mayor Tom Menino became the 20-year watchdog of Boston, he was a humble City Council candidate from the neighborhood of Hyde Park. Recently cropping up on YouTube is a documentary by WGBH which the local news station chronicled Mayor Menino’s first ever run for City Council in 1984.

The video runs a solid half hour and I’d recommend checking it out when you have time to spare. But if you don’t, allow me to provide you with a brief synopsis.

The documentary depicts a Tom Menino the likes of which now resides only with history and not the current and future generations of Boston. But the outgoing Mayor we’ve all come to know and love, awkward verbal gaffes and all, kickstarted his political career undertaking a grassroots campaign in what’s today Boston’s District 5.

Interestingly, it also sheds insight into Menino’s family life, how he was coached in oration by his wife Angela and mother, how his father wanted him to pursue a collegiate education to the chagrin of his devout political ambitions, and how he became a champion of blue-collar Boston much like Mayor-elect Marty Walsh.

And while to this day, Mayor Menino continues to live a public life chock-full of ribbon cuttings, groundbreakings, and various appearances despite entering the twilight of his life, we see in this video a younger, energized, more robust City Councilor.

As we prepare to usher in a new mayor and write a new chapter in the annals of Boston history, it’s important that we remember everything Tom Menino accomplished from his days as a candidate for his district, to his final days as mayor, including the widespread revitalization of Boston neighborhoods, the bolstering of technological innovation, and the increase in resources for the Boston Public Schools students.

You can check out the entire video below: