Town of Hampden welcomes regional health inspector to cover food and septic inspections

The Town of Hampden Select Board on Oct. 6 met representatives of the regional health service and introduced Lily Judah as the town’s new health inspector.

Finn McCool, the regional health director, said Judah will perform food establishment inspections and investigate nuisance complaints for member communities, including Hampden. He said she will take on septic-related work governed by Title 5 after completing required training.

McCool said the inspector will attend town events that involve food service and will be available to businesses and residents for public-health questions. "She's fairly new, but has already taken on so much. And I gotta say that I'm very happy with her performance and what she's been able to do," McCool said.

Judah described her public-health education and local ties. She said she holds a Master of Science in public health from McGill University and a Bachelor of Science in public health from the University of Massachusetts, and that she lives in West Brookfield. She told the board she regularly hands reports to town staff and visits local businesses, pools and schools as part of inspection duties.

Board members thanked the regional service arrangement that shares inspection resources among several towns and praised Judah's outreach to local establishments. The board noted the inspector will work closely with the town’s Board of Health chair and with local staff on inspections and Title 5 responsibilities when training is complete.

The board did not take formal action on public-health staffing at the meeting; McCool and Judah’s introduction was presented for information.