In some ways, the people of Belmont were like a second family to Delores Keefe, a longtime resident of Belmont and a dedicated public servant. Speaking to Town Meeting 15 years ago, she referred to her family as her first world and Belmont as her second world.
“Delores was an institution,” said state Sen. William Brownsberger, whose time on the Select Board overlapped with her time in the town clerk’s office. “Anybody who did anything related to politics or government in Belmont worked with Delores in many capacities. The clerk’s office is so important to the functioning of the town.”
The former town clerk died Nov. 27 at the age of 89. She was the wife of the late Roy E. Keefe and the mother of Deborah Haase, Gary Keefe, Brian Keefe of Belmont, and the late Kevin Keefe.
Born in New Jersey, Delores moved to Belmont in 1942 at the age of 7. She graduated from Belmont High School in 1953 and from Marjorie Webster College in Washington, D.C., two years later, according to her son, Brian, a Town Meeting member representing Precinct 4.
Delores and her husband moved around a bit — never straying too far from Belmont — and in 1968, moved back to town, where Delores’ three younger brothers had bought homes and begun to raise their own families. It wasn’t until 1983, when her youngest son left for college, that Delores took a job at the town clerk’s office.
In 1999, when the then-town clerk announced her retirement, Delores was tapped to take over the position. She served as town clerk from the time she was appointed in 1999 (and subsequently elected in 2001) until her retirement in 2010.
“She loved being town clerk; it was right up her alley,” said Brian Keefe.
According to Brownsberger, as town clerk, Delores oversaw elections, annual and special Town Meetings, licensing, and public records and even presided over the first gay marriage in Belmont.
“One of the things she loved to do was the ceremonies,” Keefe said. “She felt it was an honor that they asked her. She always tried to make sure it was personal to them.”
That, and her daily interactions with people, were among her favorite aspects of the job.
“Delores took great pride in working for and being elected to serve the town of Belmont as Town Clerk; her dedication to our residents and the many couples whose weddings she officiated was exemplary,” said Town Clerk Ellen O’Brien Cushman. “I am honored to be elected to serve as her successor.”
Delores also served on the town’s Board of Registrars, By-Law Review Committee, Vision 21 Committee, 150th Anniversary Committee, the Belmont High School Class of 1953 Reunion Committee, and the Belmont High School Parents Reunion Committee.
Brian Keefe said he remembers telling his mother about the passage of the override votes for the new municipal skating rink and public library, which were among the goals outlined in the Vision 21 Committee.
“She was ecstatic,” he said, particularly about the rink. Hockey was big in his family.
At the April 2010 annual Town Meeting, then Select Board member Angelo Firenze read a proclamation in recognition of her retirement and years of service to the town.
“I admired her work very much,” Brownsberger said. “She was kind, she was fair, she was diligent, and a consummate public servant.”
Former Select Board member Mark Paolillo recalled Delores as “incredibly helpful” and always up to offer advice in what he described as a “very straightforward, honest and patient way.” His first term overlapped with her final years in the clerk’s office.
“She had a patient and quiet way about her, sort of graceful if you will,” he said. “She was always incredibly helpful when we had questions.”
Brian Keefe, meanwhile, remembers his mother as “fiercely loyal” — almost to a fault — and always pleasant. She hated flying, so family vacations were driving distance only. She loved being in Belmont.
And she knew everyone.
“If you went out on a Friday night and got in trouble, she knew the whole story before you got home,” he said, laughing.
After a period of time outside of Belmont for care, Brian Keefe is grateful his mother is back in Belmont for her final resting place.
“It finishes a nice bow on her whole life in Belmont,” he said.