Hartford Seminary wished a happy retirement to Ron Malcolm, a devoted employee for the last 17 years, at a gathering for employees and family on Aug. 30.

Malcolm famously guarded electronic equipment in a flooded Hartford Seminary basement overnight on several occasions and answered emergency calls at all hours of the day. His dedication was lauded by his supervisor, Director of Administration and Facilities Roseann Lezak, Hartford Seminary President Joel N. Lohr, and Trustee Frank Resnick, among others.

“As chair and a member of the Building and Grounds Committee for more than a decade, I know what your challenges were and what you accomplished,” Resnick wrote in a card that was read aloud at the gathering. “I will always be grateful because you made it all look so easy.”

Awad Abudullah, ICP ’14, who worked with Malcolm, performed a spoken word poem dedicated to his colleague and friend. Roseann Lezak wrote a poem as well, and Professor Miriam Therese Winter wrote original lyrics to the tune of “The Banana Boat Song,” including these:

“Basement water three feet deep.
Daylight gone, Ron wanna go home.
Hours to go before he’ll sleep.
Daylight come, Ron not goin’ home.”

Many of Malcolm’s 10 children also spoke about their father and his dedication to Hartford Seminary. A video of the event can be found below.