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Edward Earl Roderick was
born in Patterson, MO on November 18, 1932 to Cecil Vernon Roderick
and Virginia Arlene Miller. The oldest of three children, Ed was a
born leader.
Anxious for an outstanding education following his
1950 graduation from Hickman High School in Columbia, MO, Ed pursued
an Academy
appointment from Missouri Senator Forrest C. Donnell.
At West Point, Ed excelled in academics, especially
in Electrical Engineering on which he tutored fellow classmates.
Soon after graduation, Ed married his OAO, Carolyn Francis English,
in Columbia, MO.
Commissioned in Armor, Ed’s first assignment
following the basic branch course was in Germany with the 14th
Armored Cavalry Regiment.
Upon returning to the United States, Ed attended
graduate school at Purdue University in 1961, receiving his master’s
degree in electrical engineering with an emphasis on information
theory and servomechanism.
Ed then returned to USMA and the Electrical
Engineering Department. After one year as an instructor teaching
communication electronics, he was made an Assistant Professor. The
following two years, he also supervised the teaching activities of
10 other instructors for over 200 class hours weekly. He was
responsible for all course preparation and communication as well as
electronic instruction content. He also assisted in preparing a new
basic electronic textbook.
From 1964 to 1965, Ed served as battalion logistics
officer and operations officer in the 1st Armored Division at Fort
Hood, TX, planning and supervising tactical and training operations.
Ed served the next year as Deputy Province Advisor in
the Quang Tin Province in South Vietnam, advising the Deputy
Province Chief on economic, organizational and military aspects of
province administration. Reassigned to I Corps advisory Detachment
Civil and Psychological Affairs Office, he was responsible for
coordinating activities of five province teams in rural development
and reconstruction. Wounded during the tour, he received the Purple
Heart.
Following his graduation from C&GSC in 1967, Ed had
DA staff duty at the Office of the Chief of Research and Development
(OCRD), supervising and monitoring all Army development programs in
electronic warfare, cryptologic activities and counter-intelligence
activities. He was the OCRD representative on the Army Electronic
Warfare Board, Defense Service Board EW Panel, Army Cryptology
Review Board and similar groups.
Ed next served as military advisor to the Chief
Scientist, Department of the Army, with additional duties as
executive secretary of the Army Scientific Advisory Panel (ASAP),
coordinating activities, briefings, symposiums and the semi-annual
meeting of the entire ASAP.
In 1970, he returned to Fort Hood to command the 1/81
Tank Battalion, participating there in the early Modern Army
Selected Systems Test Evaluation and Review (MASSTER) tests and
conducting and supervising tactical and administrative training of
the battalion.
Ed subsequently was principal deputy to the Science
Advisor to the Commanding General, HQ MASSTER, reviewing test plans
and reports, and providing technical and scientific advice. He
helped develop a large-scale data collection system and developed,
organized and wrote specifications for an instrumentation system
using lasers and mini-computers to simulate 190 tactical weapons
systems for use in field tests. He participated in proposal
evaluation and contract negotiations and presented briefings. He
assigned responsibility for the Contracting Officer’s Technical
Representative to lead the government management team in supervising
the contractual development and fabrication of the laser hit/kill
system that cost in excess of $2.5 million.
While at HQ MASSTER, Ed became the Assistant to the
Deputy Chief of Staff, Management and Budget. He was the principal
staff officer responsible for internal organization, budgeting,
accounting, statistical analysis, management engineering and
automatic data processing.
He was assigned to Iran in 1974 with duties as Corps
Area Armor Advisor and advisor to the Iranian Army School.
Following retirement in June 1977, he went to work
for Bell Technical Operations, TEXTRON. He was Project Manager,
Director of Engineering, Vice President and General Manager in
Tucson, AZ until June 1988.
Ed and Carolyn retired to Kimberling City, MO, moving
to a house next door to his parents. Serving as a local alderman for
six years, he chaired the Planning and Zoning Committee and also led
the development of a Solid Waste Management Program for a
five-county area. Additionally, he chaired the Library Committee for
seven years.
Ed’s free time was devoted to his family, auto
mechanics, wood working, boating and fishing.
In 2008, Ed and Carolyn moved to Denton, TX to be
closer to their three children and eight grandchildren.
Following Carolyn’s death in January 2010, Ed found
love again with Nell Elizabeth Blazer Gardner, meeting at their high
school reunion, marrying the next year and moving to Missouri. After
Nell’s death in 2012, Ed moved to Allen, TX to once again be near
his family.
Ed’s Howitzer article
mentions his musical ability and a love of bridge. These were things
that he carried throughout his life. His collection of horns is
legendary. Card games have always been a constant at family
gatherings.
He is survived by his sister, Pat Farrand, and three
children: Susan Sherrin, Linda Hill and Steve Roderick.
Ed was one of the most dependable and conscientious
persons. He was always ready to lend a helping hand to others. Duty,
Honor, Country was how he lived his whole life. |
