Landry decides it's time for retirement
By Nicole LeBlanc

Wesley Landry

Thirty-six years is a long time to be devoted to any one thing. But there always comes a time - no matter how much energy you put into something - to move on.

Wesley P. Landry, 64, town clerk of Ashburnham for 36 years, announced his retirement on Aug. 23 - effective Oct. 1.

Selectman Jonathan Dennehy said when the retirement was announced, it was hard to imagine the town clerk's office without Landry.

"I knew that he'd been thinking about it," Dennehy said. "The startling thing was that he was the town clerk my entire life. He did my birth certificate. It won't be quite the same without him."

No one can say that Landry hasn't already served his community in more ways than most people ever will. He took over the elected position of town clerk when his father retired after having served for 12 years. He remembers his father working as the town clerk, as an accountant, and also working full-time. After he watched his father perform town clerk responsibilities, he had a feel for the job before he even started.

"I'm very proud that we served the town for 48 years," Landry said.

In fact, Landry is only one-year shy of being the longest running town clerk in the area. Paul Berry of Southborough has served for 37 years, said Landry.

"I wanted to be the top one, but I'll let him win out," he said.

Landry has his reasons for deciding now is the time, something he's considered for a few years now.

"There's lots of turmoil in this town," he said. "I mean, how many years have they been arguing about the public safety building? It's just one thing or another, and there's more brewing. Nothing seems to go the way it should go. I've had it."

For Landry, there is also a wound that won't heal - a wound that he said was inflicted by members of the town administration. He said he was given faulty questions for the absentee election ballots, and that - when he sent out the ballots as was required of him - he was blamed for the mistake.

As the chief election officer, it was Landry's duty to print the ballots and run an election, but, according to Landry, administration printed new ballots without his knowledge.

"You can't tell people to send back their old ballots, so we can send them new ones," said Landry. "They went over my head and did everything secretly without me knowing."

During a following, emergency meeting, said Landry, he was chastised by a selectman for the situation. According to Kevin Paicos, the town administrator, the technical word issue was - in the end - dropped, considered irrelevant by the state.

"It turned out to be much ado about nothing," said Paicos, who stepped up and took responsibility for the mishap.

Although the administration has since apologized and Landry has accepted their apology, he says that the wound is too deep for him to continue working as the town clerk.

Town government aside, Landry also based his decision to retire on the basis of what is really important to him. Family health problems are a leading factor in why he feels he must retire. His wife of 44-years comes first in his life.

Still, Landry did his town clerk job well. Paicos said that Landry has a great amount of experience and that he is highly trained. Landry achieved the position of Certified Municipal Clerk and was one of the first town clerks in the state to achieve it.

"It's quite exceptional," said Paicos.

Because of his certification - which is a demanding goal to reach - and his 36 years of experience, Landry is very difficult to replace.

He believed that his shoes would best be filled by someone who had worked alongside him as his assistant of 20 years, Linda Ramsdell.

"I highly recommend her," said Landry. "She knows the job very well. It was my wish and they granted it."

Dennehy said that choosing Ramsdell as the interim town clerk was an easy decision, because it made perfect sense and promised a seamless transition.

Ramsdell understands the job and knows the people in town, said Dennehy. He hopes that she will even run for the elected position in the spring.

"Linda has the advantage of having worked with Landry for years," Paicos said.

One of the reasons Landry says he was so successful in his town clerk position, he thinks, was that he worked fulltime on a part-time salary of $12,390. Landry said it was not unusual for people to say, "call the town clerk at home; he has the answer."

With 36-years of knowledge stored in his mind and files of information stored in his home for easy access, he was the man to call.

Landry worked full-time as the head groundskeeper for the Templeton Development Center until 2001. That, he said, did not discourage him from being busy at the Ashburnham Town Clerk's office.

Managing town meetings; recording births, deaths, and marriages; serving as justice of the peace - Landry had a lot on his plate. Even now that he's leaving, he is busy with organizing files for his replacement and voicing his opinions as to what he believes could improve the office.

Although he said he is looking forward to having more free time to golf, ski and do anything but go to the town hall and spend his entire day on the phone, he is leaving with fond memories.

"My favorite part was being Justice of the Peace," said Landry who was JP since 1972 and who performed hundreds of wedding ceremonies. "I could almost write a book about all the odd things that happened at weddings. There are so many stories."

Landry said it was his pleasure to work for the town and he appreciated the support of his election workers and the citizens of Ashburnham.

"It was with regret that I gave my notice," he said. "I've enjoyed working for this town."

-  - Nicole LeBlanc is a 2005 graduate of Eastern Nazarene College, in Quincy. She is living in Templeton.