By Staff
Loved the law, and it showed
By CLAUD HODGES
Senior Reporter
Ed Rodman, a lawyer whose lifetime home was Washington, returned from college, the military and law school to contribute greatly to the community.
Ed Rodman died April 29. He was 81 years old.
Rodman was a 1955 graduate of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill School of Law. He practiced law throughout his career with the firm Rodman Holscher Francisco &Peck PA in Washington.
Rodman’s father, William B. Rodman III, was a judge on the N.C. Supreme Court, a member of the N.C. Legislature and was the state’s attorney general, said Lawrence.
She said their father was always glad to do what was needed in any situation.
Rodman’s father preceded him in the firm of Rodman Holscher Francisco &Peck PA, which dates back to the early 1870s. Ed Rodman’s cousins, John Rodman and Owen Rodman, also practiced law with the firm.
Ed Rodman’s grandfather, William B. Rodman Jr., also practiced law in Washington.
Ed Rodman worked with local school officials during the years while integration was being instituted.
David Francisco, one of Rodman’s partners, said Rodman was his mentor. Francisco started work with Rodman in 1975.
Francisco and Mrs. Rodman said Rodman was a leader in volunteer work to benefit the community. He was in the Jaycees and the Kiwanis Club. He also worked with the Boy Scouts.
Mrs. Rodman said her husband loved to sail. Their home was on the shores of the river.
Mrs. Rodman said the award was a shining light in Rodman’s life.
Mrs. Rodman said Rodman was very involved with the N.C. Bar Association and was a strong man of action there.
He served as the president of the N.C. Bar Association from 1975 to 1976.
He said Rodman was a mentor to him as well.
He said Rodman was a man of honor.
Billy Mayo, a Washington attorney, was a contemporary of Rodman’s.
Mrs. Rodman said her husband liked working in the courtroom. She said he liked working with civil law.
Rodman served in the Navy during World War II as an enlisted sailor and served in the Korean Conflict as a lieutenant.
Rodman graduated from N.C. State University as a civil engineer. He was a member of St. Peter’s Episcopal Church in Washington.