NEW SALEM — The torch has officially been passed at the New Salem and Wendell fire departments, with Matt O’Donnell replacing longtime Chief Joe Cuneo in the dual role on July 1.

Cuneo’s final day was June 30, the end of the fiscal year, and he has spent the past month or so helping his successor settle into his new post.

“It’s been great,” Cuneo said of his career. “I’ve overall enjoyed it a lot. Everybody I’ve worked with … has been terrific. You meet a lot of great folks, good people. It’s good to help folks and leave the situation, hopefully, better than you found it.”

Cuneo joined the fire service in 1999, the year he and his wife moved to town from Allston, when his predecessor, Tom Reidy, asked him during a transfer station visit if he wanted to join the local fire department. He became the New Salem chief in 2008 and the Wendell Selectboard appointed him as their town’s chief in 2014.

“You’re responsible for everything that happens in the Fire Department, including the lives and safety of the people who work under you, including also the safety of the community that you’re serving,” Cuneo said during an interview at the New Salem Fire Station. “You’re responsible for making sure the trucks get maintained, making sure everything works … maintaining the building.

“You have a group of people that essentially operates, in our case, as kind of a small, little family unit, basically. And you want to make sure that everybody’s good to go,” he continued. “Every single call that happens with the Fire Department, even if you’re not there, it’s still your responsibility that they all have what they need to do the job and mitigate the situation and get home safely. That’s what you’re there for.”

State law requires public safety employees to retire by age 65 unless there is an act of the state Legislature allowing them more time on the job. New Salem and Wendell residents voted at their respective 2023 Annual Town Meetings to petition lawmakers to pass a bill allowing Cuneo to continue serving as fire chief until age 70, his retirement or his non-reappointment, whichever occurs first. The legislation was adopted but Cuneo, who turns 67 in October, said he is now ready to step down.

“You need to know when it’s your time to go, you know what I mean? And you want to leave on a good note, which it is,” he said.

Cameron Dunbar, New Salem’s moderator and the town’s new deputy fire chief, has been with the Fire Department since 2006 and said Cuneo did an outstanding job modernizing the equipment and vehicles firefighters use to perform their jobs.

“The fire service in the late 1990s and early 2000s here in New Salem was defined by making do with what we had and could afford. Chief Cuneo made a convincing case to protect his people with modern, safe, professionally designed vehicles — and the communities have listened,” Dunbar said. “Chief Cuneo always made sure to note his appreciation for what his totally on-call staff did and the time they gave up, away from their families and lives, to protect others. We appreciate what he pushed for to leave the two departments with modern equipment and well-trained staff, and we are in good hands with his successor, Chief Matthew O’Donnell.”

Cuneo, who grew up in New York and moved to Boston to attend Berklee College of Music, mentioned he will remain New Salem’s emergency management director for the time being. He also said the fire departments are in good hands with O’Donnell, who he said is very intelligent and is “already picking it up very fast.”

“Joe leaves really big shoes to fill, but I’ve gotten to work for him … 11 years,” O’Donnell said. “I was hired in Wendell shortly before he took over as chief. So, my whole fire career, I was trained by Joe. That helps a lot.”

O’Donnell, 52, grew up in southeastern Connecticut and attended the University of Massachusetts, where he earned a bachelor’s degree and a master’s degree. He worked for the federal government as a research ecologist at the U.S. Geological Survey’s Eastern Ecological Science Center at the Silvio O. Conte Research Laboratory in Turners Falls for 23 years. He said he initially declined Cuneo’s suggestions over the past year to replace him as fire chief.

“But at the time, I had this highly successful science career. I had colleagues around the world and all that. I love the fire stuff, but it’s hard to justify giving up a high-paying, 23-year career. But, then, of course, January came and things started becoming very uncomfortable,” he said, referring to sweeping spending cuts made when President Donald Trump started his second term.

“We started getting emails telling us … ‘You should leave your low-productivity, public-sector job and go into the private sector and make America great again,’ from the [Department of Government Efficiency],” he said. “So then I started thinking more about this, and then all our probationary employees were terminated, so things started getting more real in a hurry.”

O’Donnell took an early retirement buyout and his final day was May 31. The New Salem and Wendell selectboards appointed him as fire chief and paid him for June so he could earn an income while training with Cuneo.

“That was extremely helpful,” he said. “I’m really excited to have this opportunity — sad to see my science career come to an end, happy to be here as a full-time firefighter now.”

He mentioned he will remain an emeritus scientist for the research lab.

O’Donnell noted he was initially intrigued by the science associated with the fire service field — physics and chemistry for firefighting and biology for emergency medical services.

“I pretty quickly fell in love with the fire service when I started,” he said. “Probably like most firefighters, when I started … I didn’t see myself being an officer.”

A gathering has been scheduled at the New Salem Museum and Academy of Fine Art from 4 to 7 p.m. on Tuesday, July 15, to honor the retiring Cuneo. There will be light refreshments. Donations to the party and gifts will be accepted at the door. A short gift presentation and remarks will begin at around 5:30 p.m. RSVP by emailing Sara at newsalemfireassociation@gmail.com by July 9.

Reach Domenic Poli at: dpoli@recorder.com or
413-930-4120.