How do you celebrate a long-time employee’s retirement during a pandemic? Architects, engineers, and project managers of Louisville-area firm Luckett & Farley coordinated a surprise parade.
The 20-car celebration rolled past architect and studio director Don VanBogaert’s home waving signs and honking horns at a safe social distance to honor the 40-year Luckett & Farley employee. VanBogaert would have had his final full day in the office that day, but COVID-19 halted the firm’s plans to honor the outgoing director. Coworkers came up with the idea for a celebratory parade instead. Though not traditional, the retirement parade served as an uplifting public ‘thank you’ for VanBogaert’s service to the firm.
VanBogaert led Luckett & Farley’s government studio, which serves clients in the federal government and military. In his four decades at the firm, he managed projects valued at more than $200 million in construction including the original Woodford Reserve Visitor Center in Versailles and the Kentucky Veterans Cemetery Central in Radcliff.
