Westford Celebrates Highway Superintendent With Parade

WESTFORD, MA — If you were anywhere near Town Hall Wednesday morning you may have noticed a parade of town vehicles and some honking and sirens, and a few dozen people standing in front, cheering. That was all in honor of Westford Highway Superintendent Richard "Chip" Barrett's last day with the town after 44 years.

"I was really very taken aback," Barrett said of all the well-wishers Wednesday, admitting when he saw the people standing outside of Town Hall, he wondered if the fire alarm had gone off.

But the fire alarm had not gone off: The staff and former colleagues were outside to send him off in style. Together they stood watching as town vehicles paraded by in tribute.

After more than four decades spanning several departments — he was a town firefighter, a police officer, water commissioner in addition to highway superintendent— you get to know a lot of people in town, he said.

The best part of serving the town over the years?

"Oh, it's the people," he said. "The people that you work with the people that you help, I consider them friends."

And dozens of those friends and colleagues were there to wish him well in his next adventure, including Warren Razzaboni. Barrett hired Razzaboni, to his surprise, when he was 57 years old.

It meant a lot to Razzaboni, who stepped up to take a picture with his former boss.

"I said why me?" Razzaboni said. "Why not someone younger?"

Barrett said he knew some of his best workers were not the youngest workers and gave him a chance.

"Chip's a great guy," Razzaboni said, as a steady stream of people came up to congratulate Barrett on his retirement and to fist bump or tap elbows.

Nicole Feliciano, who worked for Barrett for the past eight years, teared up as she thought about her boss leaving.

"He was just great," she said. "One of the best bosses I've ever had."

So what's next for him?

After the pandemic ends he hopes to take a road trip.

"There's a lot of highway I haven't looked at," he said chuckling at the pun. "A couple of roads I haven't seen yet."

Previously: Westford Highway Superintendent Chip Barrett To Retire After 44 Years