By Margaret Carroll-Bergman – Correspondent
Sometimes a career — and decades’ worth of appreciation — can surprise a person.
“I did not expect to be here 40 years,” says Jim Bozak. “I grew to like the job, and I liked the people I worked with, so I stayed.”
Bozak retired this month as building services supervisor at the middle school, after serving Concord Public Schools for 40 years. He was also president of AFSCME Local 1703 Concord Public School Building Services Workers for 36 years.
“I remember the first day I started in Concord,” Bozak says. “It was June 10, 1985, and I was at CCHS and cleaning the principal’s bathroom. I was only 21 years old, and the principal, Elaine DiCicco, comes out of the bathroom and says, ‘What did you do to deserve this?’
“It was fun,” he says. “She was a great principal.”
Stationed at the middle school’s Peabody Building in recent years, Bozak was in charge of keeping the 56,500-square-foot school safe and clean for students, faculty, and staff alike.
Caring dedication
Bozak always went the extra step — or several — say those who have watched his work over the decades.
“I’ve known him for 39 years,” says Kim Morahan, a bus driver and lunch monitor. “Jimmy is very conscientious, looking out for the whole property, especially where it concerns the safety of the children.”
“He did more than be the custodian of the Peabody Building,” says Concord Middle School principal Justin Cameron. “Jim was most well-known [for] being outside greeting every faculty member or student as they entered the building. In fact, not only would he be outside greeting students as they were getting off the bus, but greeting parents as they dropped students off from a car.”
Steve McCarthy, father of Quincey, who attended Peabody last year, praises Bozak for keeping the old building clean and shiny. His parents, now in their 60s, attended middle school in Sanborn and Peabody when the buildings were new.
“Jim is a good guy; he should be recognized,” McCarthy says. “He always has a smiling face, always happy. He took pride in his job.”
‘A good atmosphere’
Bozak applied for the custodial job shortly out of high school.
“I didn’t know what I wanted to do,” he says. “I kind of liked it, and then I was promoted.”
He credits George Gower, his first boss, with being his mentor. Soon he was elevated to supervisor at the Ripley School and transferred to Alcott, and then the middle school.
“It’s a lot of hours, and if someone doesn’t come in, you have to work overtime, because the job has to get done,” says Leo Gower, son of George Gower and a longtime friend of Bozak.
In 2001, Bozak was appointed facilities manager for the school district.
“I took the job on a Friday and went in on Monday and refused the job,” he says. “One of the best things that I did. When you work with kids, it makes you feel young. It’s a good atmosphere to work in.”
Goodbye, snowy mornings
There are challenges to being a building maintenance supervisor, and sometimes, that includes the weather.
“I won’t miss those snowy mornings,” he says. “During a snowstorm, you are waiting to see if the superintendent will close the school down. If you don’t know it the night before, you are up all night trying to make sure school will be ready to go.”
Peabody will soon be mothballed and Sanborn demolished as students from both buildings take their seats at the new $110 million Ellen Garrison Building at Concord Middle School this month.
Bozak, 61, is three years older than the Peabody Building, which houses grade six. Grades seven and eight are found in Sanborn.
“It’s the right time to go. I’ve been trying to balance work with family,” Bozak says. “I have a couple of job offers, but holding off for now. I am not a person to sit around and do nothing.”
