William L. Rodman

William L. Rodman

William L. Rodman, 91, of Charlottesville, Virginia, died on Thursday, January 7, 2010.

He was born on May 13, 1918, the son of the late Doctor and Mrs. John Stewart Rodman of Philadelphia.

He is survived by his wife of 67 years, Helen Daniel Rodman; a son, William Louis Rodman Jr.; a daughter, Channing Penna; four grandchildren, Sean Stewart Rodman, Trevor Thieme, Brandon Thieme, Channing Spring Rodman; and two great- grandchildren, Jasmine Fulton Rodman and Isaac Hugh Rodman.

A second daughter, Joan Stewart Rodman, predeceased him in 1973.

In 1940, after attending Phillips Exeter Academy and the University of Pennsylvania, Mr. Rodman enlisted in the First City Troop, Philadelphia Cavalry. Subsequently the horse cavalry was mechanized. As a company commander in the Third Armored Division he saw action in Normandy, France, Belgium, and Germany. He was awarded the Silver Star, the Bronze Star with oak leaf cluster, and two Presidential Unit Citations. Mr. Rodman was honorably discharged from the army on Christmas day, 1945.

Following the war, Mr. Rodman received a B.S. degree in Agricultural Science from Virginia Tech, and was elected into the honor society of Phi Kappa Phi. After graduation, he managed Brandy Rock Farm in Brandy, Virginia, for three years. In 1951, he joined the United States Foreign Agricultural Service which he served for 30 years with postings in Canada, Argentina, Costa Rica, Nicaragua, Panama, Australia, Mexico and England. He was a graduate of the Department of State's Senior Seminar in Foreign Policy, an executive program attended by high level career government officials. Mr. Rodman was presented with the USDA Superior Service Award in 1962, and retired from the Foreign Service with the rank of Counselor of Embassy in 1980.

Following retirement to Charlottesville, Mr. Rodman became active in community affairs. He joined with his wife in founding the Piedmont Chapter of the Compassionate Friends, a support group for bereaved parents. He chaired the founding committee of the Ministry with the Aging sponsored by the Episcopal Diocese of Virginia, and served as Senior Warden at Emmanuel Episcopal Church, Greenwood, Virginia, where he was one of the original organizers of bi-monthly entertainment at the Mountainside Retirement Home in Crozet, formerly Wyndham. Mr. Rodman co-founded the Charlottesville Region Ten committee of the M.O. Mohr Center for the Homeless, and was vice-chair of the first Children's Medical Center Committee at the University of Virginia, formed in 1983. The following year, he helped organize the first telethon in conjunction with the national Children's Miracle Network. He was active in the Lewis Mountain Neighborhood Association, serving twice as president. He loved gardening and had a kind word and smile for all people.

The immediate family will hold a private interment this week at Emmanuel Episcopal Church in Greenwood, where a memorial service will follow in the spring, the time to be announced.

The family wishes to thank the nursing staff at Westminster Canterbury of the Blue Ridge, who cared so lovingly for Bill during his long illness.

Contributions will be gratefully accepted by the Joan Stewart Rodman Memorial Fund, St. Catherine's School, 6001 Grove Avenue, Richmond, VA 23226.

Friends may sign the guest book at www.hillandwood.com.


This obituary was originally published in the Daily Progress.