Safety Grant Created to Honor Crane Accident Victim
October 15, 2008
The family of American Society of Safety Engineers’ (ASSE) member Terrance M. Hennessy, CSP, ALCM, ARM, AMIM, CHSP, who lost his life in a tragic crane accident March 25 in Miami, FL, contributed more than $40,000 to the ASSE Foundation to fund a professional development grant in Hennessy’s honor. The Terrance M. Hennessy Professional Development Grant in the amount of $2,000 will be awarded annually to safety, health and environmental professionals for programs such as the ASSE certification prep workshop for the ASP, CSP, CHST or OHST, BCSP certification fees, an ASSE seminar or symposia or the annual ASSE Professional Development Conference.
On March 25, 2008, Mr. Hennessy was on a routine construction site visit when a crane collapsed. His purpose of the visit was to provide risk and safety guidance aimed at preventing workplace injuries.
“In recognition of this accident, the Terrance M. Hennessy Professional Grant Program has been created to support the advancement of knowledge and skills of safety and risk professionals in hopes that future work site injuries and fatalities can be prevented,” Michael Hennessy, Hennessy’s son, said.Hennessy lived in Fort Lauderdale, FL, and was born in Oak Park, IL. He grew up in Maywood, IL, and attended Proviso East High School. He married and moved to Chicago, IL, for a short period of time before moving to Hinsdale, IL, where he and his wife Vincenza raised their three children.
Hennessy held the position of vice president in the risk consulting practice at Marsh and was a highly knowledgeable professional in the risk and safety industry. “This enabled him to help make many job sites safer places to work and as a result kept many workers out of harm’s way,” Michael said.
Hennessy studied engineering at Triton Community College and took a number of graduate-level professional development curriculum courses enabling him to achieve a list of respected professional designations including: ALCM, ARM, AMIM, CHSP, and CSP.
He is survived by his three children, Kristine HennessySpeh, married to AJ Speh IV, with two sons -- AJ Speh V and Jack Speh, of Jensen Beach, FL; Michael Hennessy, married to Julie, of Chicago, IL; and Thomas Hennessy of San Diego, CA. Terrance Hennessy is also survived by his mother Irene Hennessy of Portland, OR, his sister Patricia Hennessy, of Portland, OR, and his brother Thomas P. Hennessy of West Chicago, IL.
His family describes Mr. Hennessy as “a very social person who enjoyed being around people, traveling to new places, and making new friends. He put a special emphasis on his family and kept a very close relationship with all of his children and grandchildren.”
In a nutshell, Terry was the type of person who typically had a smile on his face and knew the meaning of how to be a good friend, his son Michael noted.
The American Society of Safety Engineers Foundation
