Tree Planted in Honor of Mike Szczepaniak

Mike Szczepaniak . He was 49. 

Now, when his wife, Sherri, looks out the window from her office, she can see a tree planted in his honor. 

Sherri works in an office directly across from . To remember Mike, friends purchased a tree to be planted there, in a location Sherri can see from her desk. There will be a plaque beneath the tree in Mike’s honor.

It’s a red sunset maple. Mike and Sherri's son Mitch picked it out.

“Now I’ll always be able to look outside and see Mike’s tree from my desk,” Sherri said.

Mike and his family have a deep Woodridge connection. Mike grew up in the Woodridge area. He played football for  and was named most valuable player in a season when DGS lost every single game, Sherri said. 

After playing football for Northern State University in South Dakota, he met Sherri and moved the family back to the Woodridge area to become a union contractor. Mike worked at DePaul University before he died. 

Both Mitch and Dustin have worked in the Woodridge  department. Dustin is a former seasonal employee and Mitch is a current full-time employee. Dustin is now working on his master’s degree from DePaul.