Proud Dad Rents Billboard To Celebrate Son’s Doctorate From University Of Chicago

A dad wanted to show his son how proud he was of him for earning a doctoral degree at the University of Chicago and he came up with a special way to show it.
Photo credit Brandon Truett/Twitter

CHICAGO (WBBM NEWSRADIO) -- Since the University of Chicago is not holding commencement ceremonies due to the COVID-19 pandemic, one dad wanted to show how proud he was of his son for earning a doctoral degree, and he came up with a unique way to show it.

Jimmy Truett did not even graduate from high school. Now his son, Brandon, has a doctorate in English from the University of Chicago; and since the University of Chicago canceled its commencement ceremony, Jimmy Truett was not going to let the moment pass unnoticed. 

In fact, he was not going to let any car pass along Highway 501 in South Carolina without noticing. He arranged to have his son's picture and a congratulatory message posted on a billboard in their hometown.

“I figured I’d put his name in lights," Jimmy Truett told the Tribune, hoping the billboard makes his son feel special.

The display for Brandon includes a photo of him on one side and large text on the other that reads, “Congratulations Dr. Brandon Truett! PhD in Eng.” The billboard cycles through a few different advertisements and shows Brandon’s message for about 45 seconds, Truett said.

“It was kind of amazing to see my dad find an innovative way to mark the achievement in a public way,” Brandon Truett told the Tribune. “A commencement is a very public way of watching everyone cross the stage in all the regalia, which we can’t do right now.”

After Truett, 30, tweeted the billboard photo Tuesday morning, there were more than 80,000 interactions to it by Tuesday afternoon. The tweet read, "it felt weird, maybe even futile, to celebrate my achievement at home, esp as the pandemic exacerbates an already vanishing job market. But, I gotta say, this ostentatious display of support from my Dad, who didn't graduate high school, has got me feeling proud of myself today."

It felt weird, maybe even futile, to celebrate my achievement at home, esp as the pandemic exacerbates an already vanishing job market. But, I gotta say, this ostentatious display of support from my Dad, who didn't graduate high school, has got me feeling proud of myself today. pic.twitter.com/DqKMN2eXrB

— Brandon Truett (@bwtruett) May 5, 2020

According to the Tribune, Jimmy Truett started thinking of ways to acknowledge his son after the University of Chicago announced in April that it could not hold its traditional in-person convocation.

Jimmy Truett searched for billboards in the Chicago area, but the closest one he could find was about 25 miles away from Brandon’s home in the Lakeview neighborhood, he said. He ultimately chose one in their hometown so neighbors, friends, and relatives would see Brandon’s accomplishments and reach out to him.

“I’m really proud of him,” Jimmy Truett told the Tribune. “He’s worked really hard. He’s kept his nose clean and he’s been raised to be a fine young man."