After almost three decades working as a clerk for Mt. Olive Twp., Michelle “Masser” DePinto, is closing up her books and retiring.
DePinto will shut down her employee computer for the last time as Mt. Olive Twp. clerk on Wednesday, July 31, the day after her birthday. Recently married in May, DePinto of Newton has a lot to celebrate as she cruises at 55 as a new bride and soon to be retiree.
Working most of her life, DePinto has earned some “me” time.
“I want to take care of me for once and put myself first,” says DePinto who got married in May. “I have been working since I was 14 years old at one job or another or sometimes three at once. I want an easy-going life with no stress, or at least way less stress.”
DePinto attended Lenape Valley Regional High School but dropped out at the age of 16. She “got my GED immediately and just worked since then, supporting myself,” she explains.
She started out working in the medical billing field before Mt. Olive Twp. would become her only other place of employment.
Her profession “kind of chose me,” she says as she started out as a temp in the fall of 1994 before being hired at the age of 25 on Jan. 11, 1995, as the assistant to the Mt. Olive Twp. clerk, a position she held for nine years before being appointed as Deputy Twp. clerk in May 2004.
At that time, DePinto went back to school to obtain her RMC (Registered Municipal Clerk) License and received her certification in April 2010. After 11 years as deputy clerk, she was appointed in October of 2015 to Mt. Olive Twp. Clerk, after the retirement of Lisa Lashway.
DePinto witnessed many changes over the years whether in facilities, methods and technology.
“Moving from the old municipal building to the new site was quite a change,” she shares, as well as “Increased responsibilities and deadline with OPRA among many other areas of the job.”
Advancing in her career with more responsibilities has been her greatest accomplishment.
“Moving up in the chain of command, obtaining my RMC certification and being responsible for our records retrieval system that I put in place many years ago, and we still use it today,” is some of her achievements. “We pride ourselves on being able to retrieve documents quickly and efficiently.
“I feel we have kept the office running smoothly even though I feel our staff in this particular office is understaffed,” she admits. “We have a very heavy workload and would be a benefit having another employee in the office.”
Her favorite aspect of her career has been, “Making lifelong friendships. There are so many memories I will cherish.”
She will carry those with her as she retires, a move she has been planning for these past few months.
“I did not have an official announcement,” she says. “Everyone knew I was going to be leaving as soon as I could.”
She put her retirement in at the end of January.
As far as what is next, DePinto says “Nothing at the moment. Just take each day as it comes and make decisions as I decide when and where the next chapter of my life will take me.”
And for Mt. Olive, DePinto “proudly will pass the baton to Susan Gouveia. She currently is the deputy clerk.
“I wish my girls Susan Gouveia (current deputy clerk) and Jessica Sosa (current assistant to the township clerk – soon to be deputy clerk) the best of luck in the future! I know you will make me proud!”
DePinto concludes with a final message: “Although we work for the public, please remember we are all human and all deserve respect. The job is not as easy as everyone thinks. I often have told people that I would love them to sit in my chair for a week to see and understand what we do. Only then would they probably have an appreciation for the employees.”
