Sweet Auburn: The Magazine of the Friends of Mount Auburn A Healing and Meditative Landscape | Page 24

People and Happenings
Best
Wishes
to Six New Retirees
On June 30, 2017, we bid farewell to six dedicated
employees who all chose to retire after working at Mount
Auburn for over 30 years. The combined years of service of
the six employees was, in fact, 209 years!
Each of these individuals truly left their mark and were
major reasons why the staff at Mount Auburn is so widely
respected for its high standards of professionalism and
compassionate service. While they each left large shoes to
fill and will be sorely missed as full-time members of the
Mount Auburn family, we were fortunate to have existing
staff who had already been trained and mentored and were
ready to step up and fill four out of the six positions—a
true reflection of the caring and sharing attitude of our
employees.
Following, in descending order starting with the longest
period of service, is a photo of each new retiree along with
a selection of quotes from co-workers. The longest-serving
employee, Bill Shea, deserves special recognition for his
40 years as part of the Mount Auburn family. Billy started
on the Grounds Crew and soon moved to the Interments
Crew. He climbed the ladder of responsibility to take over
the entire Cemetery Operations Department due to his
skills as a manager but more importantly his compassion
for the families we serve and his ability to impart that same
compassion to the rest of his staff. I learned a lot over the
years from Billy about what it means to work at a cemetery,
and I am grateful for the opportunity I had to work with
him. I am also grateful to all six of the following individuals
for their many years of outstanding and dedicated service
and wish them nothing but the best in retirement. They
have certainly earned it!
—Dave Barnett
Staff Remembers…
Bill Shea, Director of Cemetery Operations,
Started on 6/28/77
Bill Shea started at Mount Auburn Cemetery in June 1977 on the
Grounds Crew. Billy always had profound words to share with friends
and co-workers, phrases like, “I have tried in my way to be free.” He
would often quote Leonard Cohen or Bob Dylan in order to cut to the
heart of a conversation. Billy was also a strong and important advocate
for natural burials at Mount Auburn. He always had great faith in the
interment crew and if a grave had to be dug by hand, he knew his team
could do it in just a few hours. If multiple burials had to be done at once,
or if any unexpected challenges arose, Billy was always calm and made
sure everyone else was too—always leading by example. Billy was fun to
be around!
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