Condolences

• 04/27/2021

  Bill Stull, Prof. of English, A&S, Univ. of Hartford

  I am so very sorry for the loss of John. He was warm, gentle and forever humble and unassuming. He was loved by so many. One of his former students had bipolar disorder and occasionally would quit taking his lithium. This would send him into a state of mania and would cause him to exhibit really strange behavior. One day he actually arrived at John's class wearing a hospital johnnie, went right to the head of the class and proceeded to "teach" the class. John handled it in his usual calm and caring way, and he actually took this student under his wing and I promise you that student would not have graduated without John's tutelage and understanding. He was a remarkable man in so many ways. My thoughts and prayers are with you. Sue

• 04/27/2021

  Bill Stull, Prof. of English, A&S, Univ. of Hartford

  Condolences to John's family, friends and colleagues. I worked with John for five years at the University of Hartford, before leaving for his home state and the University of Rhode Island. With journalism in common, we shared many long conversations at the UofH, and corresponded periodically in the years since, although not recently. He was a kind and gentle man with seemingly unlimited patience with students. He also was a skilled writer of both journalism and fiction. In careers as long as our, it is not unusual to lose touch with the many colleagues with whom we shared our working days. The death of one of those individuals, especially when as untimely as John's, reminds us of the time we spent together -- at the UofH it was long lunches in the Faculty Dining Room and the occasional end-of-day social gathering. I feel privileged to have known and worked with John, and am saddened by his death. Barbara F. Luebke Professor of Journalism University of Rhode Island

• 04/27/2021

  Bill Stull, Prof. of English, A&S, Univ. of Hartford

  Dear Rosann and Family, Please accept my sincere sympathy. My thoughts and prayers are with you at this very sad time. With love and understanding, Fay Sisson

• 04/27/2021

  Bill Stull, Prof. of English, A&S, Univ. of Hartford

  Our thoughts are with the family and all those connected to John. We in Vermont have known John for only a few short years. Always impressed by his even temperment, his thoughtfulness, his warmth. A light in this world has gone out. But in our memories he will shine for all of us forever. Lowell and Betsy, Montpelier Vermont

• 04/27/2021

  Bill Stull, Prof. of English, A&S, Univ. of Hartford

  We often say of people we admire . . . and slightly envy, ?S/he has a talent for happiness.? John Roderick had a greater and more enviable talent. He had a talent for the happiness of other people. John?s gift for happiness extended to his students, his co-workers, and his colleagues. Your good fortune, whether hard-earned or dumb luck, was his delight. His smile was as guileless as an infant?s and as knowing as the Buddha?s. In academic life the perks are modest and the competition fierce. John put matters in perspective. How many times I bellyached to him about inconsequential trivialities. He lent an ear, smiled beatifically, and left me feeling lighter on my feet. My big beef was a meatball. When I think of John, I see his smile?and his guitar. He owned a quality instrument, a Martin, I believe, and he played it well. He loved the writings of our most lasting contemporary poets, Bob Dylan and Paul Simon. He sang ?The Boxer? with a slugger?s soul, and everyone who heard him sang along. John lived two-thirds of the life he should have lived. As a teacher, writer, and musician he was just warming up when the curtain fell. ?Cruel, cruel, the rain and the wind,? Bob Dylan sings in ?Percy?s Song.? I?m going to listen for John?s song, watch for his smile, and celebrate the lucky fact that I crossed his path for twenty-five years at the University of Hartford. He was . . and is . . . a man whose happiness is always ours.