Питтсфидские работники вспоминают путь от первых подработок до выхода на пенсию в преддверии Дня труда

PITTSFIELD — For her first job at 14, Susan Powers earned $1.60 an hour working at Camp Stevenson-Witawentin, a girls’ day camp on Lake Onota. “It was kind of a made-up job,” Powers, now 68, jokes. Mostly she was answering the phone and doing other menial office work for about two hours a day. But it would eventually give way to a longtime career in data entry, where she spent her working years wrangling information for a variety of companies. By the time she retired in January, she said, she could type 120 words per minute. Whether you’re a seasonal worker or a seasoned longtime employee, you’ll be getting a nod of appreciation on Monday. Labor Day, which celebrates the contributions that workers of all trades have made to American society, has been observed on the first Monday of September since it became a federal holiday in 1894. Reflecting on their past and present careers ahead of the holiday, workers throughout the city recalled the myriad ways they’ve ended up at their current jobs. After a high school summer program in carpentry failed to spark his interest, Matt Ketchum instead chose to follow his interest in cutting hair. At 48, he’s now the co-owner of MR Barbers on North Street, where he enjoys getting to use his creative side and bonding with repeat clients. “I just fell in love with the craft,” said Ketchum as he gave a haircut to lifelong customer Javier Osorio, 26. The best part of the job, he said, is “making people happy, getting paid to make people feel better.” Before opening his own men’s clothing store on North Street, Steven Valenti started out as a teenage stockboy at J.J. Newberry’s, an erstwhile variety chain that sold everything under the sun. “I had a very strict boss, and he demanded a neat store,” Valenti, now 75, recalled. But out of that experience, “I learned discipline.” Now, he finds fulfillment in making sure customers feel their best for whatever event they’re dressing for: a job interview, a wedding, a prom. “We want people to leave happier than they walked in,” he said. Sometimes a job feels like a lifelong calling. Others pop up unexpectedly, like how John “Jack” Roy, 73, ended up as a crossing guard after a friend at the police station mentioned needing some extra help. That was 20 years ago. Today, he’s still donning a fluorescent vest to help young students make it to and from school safely. “It’s cool to have fun with the kids and the parents,” said Roy, who himself raised two sons. But it wasn’t clear from the beginning he’d end up there; he started out in his youth working as a welder at his father’s auto shop. Meanwhile, some city hall employees credit their past experience in service jobs with giving them the work ethic and people skills they need to succeed. Heather Brazeau, assistant city clerk, said her past jobs as a waitress and a hairdresser have prepared her well for dealing with the public. Working with vital records can mean certifying marriages, obtaining birth certificates and even reconstructing their family history. “I guess I always really liked the hustle and bustle of people and their needs,” she said. “And this job can pull you in so many directions … it’s fun.” Before becoming mayor of Pittsfield, Peter Marchetti worked as a teenage cashier at Rax Roast Beef, a chain restaurant formerly located where Koto Hibachi Steak House now sits. His memories aren’t the fondest. “I went home smelling like a fast food restaurant every day,” he recalls. But he learned to count money and work with people, which set him up well for over 30 years at Pittsfield Cooperative Bank. And it certainly paid better than his first-ever gig as a 10-year-old: opening and closing the gates at the now-defunct Shady Pines Campground in Savoy, for which he earned 25 cents an hour. But while everyone remembers their first job, fewer people stop to consider they’ll one day have a last job — until retirement age suddenly arrives. The Berkshire County Retirement Board helps municipal employees transition into retirement in most communities in the county, except for Pittsfield, North Adams and Adams. According to its 2025 annual report, 38 new retirees joined the ranks last year, adding to a total of 967 former city and town employees now living the good life. Sheila LaBarbera, director of the Berkshire County Retirement Board, estimates she’s seen thousands of people retire over her 30 years with the board. “Most of the time, people are very happy,” she said. In case they aren’t, she jokes, she’s got a box of tissues at hand in the office. But in practice, the tears shed by soon-to-be retirees are usually from joy.