DEERFIELD — With nearly three decades total in municipal experience and more than 20 years in Deerfield, Friday, Sept. 6, marked the end of a longstanding public servant’s career.

Deerfield Town Administrator Kayce Warren has officially said goodbye to the town in which she worked for nearly a quarter of a century, as she is retiring for health reasons.

“I have always had a very special place in my heart for Deerfield. Always,” Warren said in an interview in her office on her penultimate day. “It’s very hard for me to even consider leaving, but I have to take care of myself.”

The Select Board on Wednesday approved the posting the position and tapped Planning and Economic Development Coordinator Christopher Dunne as what Select Board Chair Tim Hilchey described as a “de facto” interim town administrator in the meantime.

“I’d, again, like to thank her for all her years of service to the community,” Hilchey said of Warren.

Warren began her municipal career working with the Sunderland Police Department and joined Deerfield — for the first time — as an administrative assistant in 1999. From there, she worked her way up the ranks to interim town administrator in 2014 before being named to the permanent position. Warren took a brief break from 2016 through 2020 when she served as Ashfield’s town administrator before returning to Deerfield in early 2020.

In her years of service to Deerfield, Warren has seen numerous town projects commence and all sorts of change to the community. She highlighted projects as low-profile as sidewalk replacements on North Main Street to planting the seeds of the South Deerfield revitalization plan, which officially kicked off this summer with construction on the Leary Lot starting after “many, many years.”

“Deerfield is building resources to better serve the community,” she said. “And seeing all that come to fruition, I’ll see it from the outside, but I’ll be pleased to see it happen.”

Of course, there were difficult days, too. Government, Warren said, often moves at the speed of molasses and it can be hard to please every resident. Despite these challenges, she said public service is a fulfilling endeavor in which you can see the impact of your work on your neighbors and your town.

“Town government is not an easy thing,” Warren said, “but it is the first line of democracy in this country and it’s a valuable thing.”

As she steps away from Deerfield professionally, Warren said the door is open to volunteering around town, perhaps at Tilton Library, although she said she is a little apprehensive about joining a board, at least right away, because she is trying to “disconnect” from the town. On the personal end, her health is her top priority, as well as spending more time with her family and friends.

“[I want to] reconnect with friends and family, and find some space to feel more like a connected person,” Warren said. “I tend to hyper-focus on work and I can’t do it anymore. I’ve got to be better to myself.”

Search begins

Dunne was brought into Town Hall last year to help guide numerous improvement projects after serving as Blandford’s town administrator for a year and a half. He will work alongside Assistant Town Administrator Greg Snedeker, who began working for the town on Monday. Deerfield will provide Dunne with a $1,000 monthly stipend to take over some duties from Warren.

Dunne was also tasked with reaching out to local, state and New England peers and organizations to see what candidates are out there and if there are any municipal job boards the position could be posted to. He said he reached out to some potential local candidates with no success, but Sunderland interim Town Administrator and Deerfield resident Margaret Nartowicz recommended some candidates “closer to the Boston area.”

In posting a salary range of $110,000 to $130,000, Select Board members said they are hopeful they can attract a strong candidate.

“I want to see somebody good coming into this office,” said Select Board member Blake Gilmore. “[The pay range] would be an attraction for someone who has the quality, who has the experience.”

Neighboring Sunderland is also searching for a town administrator, with Nartowicz serving in a part-time, interim capacity. Whately also recently dealt with an administrator vacancy and brought on Peter Kane as a permanent town administrator in June.

The Deerfield Select Board set a deadline of Oct. 4 for applications, although members said they’d likely consider applications past that date if necessary. The board will also convene a search committee at its regularly scheduled meeting next Wednesday.

Chris Larabee can be reached at clarabee@recorder.com.