ComEd holds surprise car parade for employee retiring after 35 years

ComEd employees held a surprise car parade this morning to celebrate employee Michael Hennessey's retirement. Hennessey, who works as a transmission and substation crew leader in Lombard, has worked for ComEd for 35 years.

Family, friends and colleagues gathered together, while complying with social distancing guidelines, to drive around the ComEd Glenbard Headquarters, 1N423 Swift Road in Lombard, where Hennessey. The ComEd vehicles honked and people gave a thumbs-up in support of Hennessey and his years of service. Over 20 cars participated in the parade, said ComEd spokesperson Cristina Meesenburg.

"ComEd employees put this together for Michael," Meesenburg said, adding that a traditional send off with employees gathered together with food couldn't happen because of the COID-19 pandemic. "It was such a creative way to honor him. They sent an invitation to people he's worked with in the past and on his team."

To close out his last day at work, Hennessey was very surprised and happy to celebrate, Meesenburg said.

"He wasn't expecting it. The ComEd trucks turned on the lights on top of their vehicles, there were happy retirement signs and someone even dressed up in a dinosaur costume," Meesenburg said.

Hennessey received a special American flag picture as a gift from ComEd's Transmission and Substation department. The picture, Meesenburg explained, represents a ComEd substation like the one where Hennessey worked. For the last year, ComEd had gifted these pictures to employees who retire from this department.