Audrey Jean Rhodes

February 28, 1934 - September 26, 2025

Beloved Wife, Mother, Grandmother, Friend, Helper

A Wife who for over 70 years saw in her husband what he couldn't, and loved him for it.

A Mother, whose children, each with unique skills and capacities and sharing a core of common values, are the product of her innate wisdom about how children grow.

A Grandmother who was able to transfer her early childhood education skills to her children to help them raise theirs.

A Friend to jog or play tennis with each day, and always available for calls when friends had problems.

A Helper in all her career choices. Volunteering as a Girl Scout leader for her daughters' troops; volunteering at Head Start, the Montgomery County Rape Crisis Center, and riding along with EMS.

After earning her BA from Antioch College, she became a nursery school teacher and then nursery school director; when she retired from those jobs, she taught water aerobics at the Aspen Hill Health Club.

An athlete who cheered on ice at the University of Minnesota and continued ice skating, playing tennis, running, jogging, and exercising in all forms until she was too ill to continue.

A fun-lover whose sense of humor was visible in her stuffed animals collection. Like "Gus" with its smirky smile that her granddaughter, Jessica, gave her the first time she went to Arbor Ridge, and which was buried with her; or Opus, the penguin from Bloom County, and the TeleTubbies connected to the back of her power scooter that would bring a smile to young retirement community staff who had enjoyed them when growing up.

And, because of love for the color purple, she wanted to be buried in her sweatshirt that declares - "When I Am An Old Woman, I Will Wear Purple." And she was.

Her sensitivity was a double-edged sword that could allow her to help others and could also cause her pain. She had difficulties in her life, especially through her brother's death, but through force of will she persisted to become what she set her mind to do. She always had a willingness to grow while fighting her internal challenges. She was loving to others while not able to show it well or to love herself.

Jean is survived by her husband of 70 years, Lewis Rhodes; her children and their spouses; Sandra Parkington and spouse Robert Parkington, Steve Rhodes and spouse Jennifer Rhodes, Heidi Rhodes, Terri Lopes and spouse Jeffery Lopes; her brother in-law Stan Segelbaum, her grandchildren and their spouses; Greg Parkington and spouse Robynne, Sarah Parkington, Jessica Karp and spouse Nick Karp, Gabe Rhodes, Caleb Rhodes, Elise Rhodes; and her three great-grandchildren Lyla Parkington, Elspeth Karp and Callum Karp.

Jean was born on February 28, 1934, in St. Louis Park MN, a suburb of Minneapolis, to Ben and Sara Berkwitz. She was the youngest of three children. Her sister, Joyce, was 18 1/2 months older than she, and her half-brother, Sandy, ten years older. As a child, she felt largely ignored by her busy family except for the attention she received from her brother, who she remembers was always there for her.

Sandy was drafted in World War II and fought with General Patton's army. Just before he was to come home, he was accidentally shot by friendly fire. She remembers the experience as traumatic, especially as she was forbidden to mention his death or any details of his life when she was growing up.

She met and married Lewis Rhodes while at the University of Minnesota. They married in Minneapolis on February 5th, 1955. Soon after, she left school to join him in Hawaii when the US Navy transferred him there. The family lived in many places around the US, and over the years increased their family by four - Sandra, Steven, Heidi, and Terri. Jean stayed home with the children and in 1965 the family moved to suburban DC and Jean began what would be years of working to better the lives of others.

She earned a BA in education from Antioch college which enabled her to teach nursery school at B'nai Israel congregation in Rockville MD and eventually to become its director. After twenty years, she retired and in 2000, she was asked to volunteer for the Montgomery County schools' Warmline program. As a Warmline counselor, she met with parents over the telephone concerning a range of child rearing problems. In 2010, she was quoted in the Washington Post as saying: "The most important thing for a child is to be validated. It's the same for their parents. It's the hardest job in the world."

In addition to Jean's contributions to the community, she taught water aerobics at the Aspen Hill Tennis & Aquatic Center for twenty years, and more recently at Riderwood after she and Lew had moved there in 2013.

A graveside service for Audrey Jean Rhodes will take place at 9AM on Tuesday, September 30, 2025 at Garden of Remembrance Cemetery (14321 Comus Road, Clarksburg, Maryland 20871). Following the graveside service will be a memorial service at 11 a.m. on Tuesday, September 30, 2025 at Riderwood Chapel (3140 Gracefield Rd., Silver Spring, MD 20904).

In lieu of flowers, contributions may be made to the Riderwood Jewish Community General Fund in care of Arlene Bennof (abennof@aol.com)

Arrangements by Hines-Rinaldi Funeral Home Inc. under Jewish Funeral Practices Committee of Greater Washington Contract.