Town Clerk Will Miss the People

Town Clerk Nancy Yendriga's favorite part of her job is the people.

"You never know what your day is going to be like. You might have an agenda of what you want to accomplish, but you really are doing what's happening coming over the counter, or telephone calls," she says.

Late next week, Yendriga won't be behind that counter, or answering that telephone, for the first time in 20 years.

She retires on Dec. 31, ending 20 years in the office: two as assistant town clerk, the last 18 as town clerk.

Selectmen recently appointed Wendy Mickel as interim town clerk until the March 4 annual town election, when a three-year term as town clerk is on the ballot.

Mickel has been assistant town clerk since Yendriga hired her for that position 18 years ago. Mickel has taken out nomination papers for the three-year term on the March ballot.

Yendriga says retiring is bittersweet.

"I've been doing this for the past 20 years. So, it's been a big part of my life," she says.

Born in Quincy, Yendriga has lived in Westborough for 36 years. She says her family came to town when her husband began working for Data General.

Yendriga says she was an election worker for Town Clerk Betty Amoroso before Amoroso hired her as assistant town clerk.

"We were a paper ballot town at that time. You would come in at quarter to eight on election night and count the ballots, which I did for years. That's how she knew me," Yendriga says.

Yendriga says Westborough had about 14,000 people when she became assistant clerk. The current population is around 18,000.

"We did more things manually than we do now. It's really progressed to be a computer-run office," she says.

Amoroso retired in July 1995. Yendriga was appointed interim clerk, then was elected clerk the following March.