Edward John Rodriguez OBITUARY
Edward John Rodriguez passed away on June 30th, 2024 in Moraga, CA. He was the husband of Sylvia Ann (Sue) Schleifer Rodriguez, with whom he shared 60 years of marriage before her passing in 2018.Edward was born in Madrid, Spain, on July 27th,1936 to Felix Rodriguez and Clara Anne Nelson Rodriguez. He and his mother fled the Spanish Civil War in 1938 and escaped to her home in the United States. The two were joined by his father in 1939, after the end of the war. The family lived in Pennsylvania, Florida, and Texas before settling in San Mateo, California where he met Sue on a blind date. The couple married in 1958 and lived in Burlingame before moving to Belmont shortly after starting their family. Edward graduated from San Mateo High School and attained his Bachelor’s degree in Economics from the College of Notre Dame (now University of Notre Dame de Namur) in Belmont, CA. Edward was active in the Sea Scouts and served in the US Naval Reserves from 1954-1962 as a submariner. He started his career at the Pacific Telephone and Telegraph Company, where he worked as a Telecommunications Engineer for 35 years until his retirement in 1984. Edward was dedicated to his family and had a strong sense of civic responsibility. He belonged to the Kiwanis and Elks clubs and served as a member of the Belmont County Water District (now the Mid-Peninsula Water District). He was a two-time mayor of Belmont and served on the City Council (1987-1995). He served as the Chair of the Belmont Finance Commission (1998-2001). In 1996, Edward was honored with Belmont’s Citizen of the Year Award. Edward enjoyed stamp collecting and chess in his free time. He helped Sue turn her passion for travel into a career when she founded Custom Travel Consultants in Woodside in 1982. The two were able to enjoy many adventures together and traveling the world with family and friends. Edward instilled in his daughters a strong sense of personal responsibility and civic-mindedness. His family remembers his devotion to his wife, his inquisitive nature, sense of justice, appreciation of beauty in art and nature, and his goofy playfulness. Edward is survived by his brother and sister, Albert (Ligia) and Gloria Mary Rodriguez; his sister-in-law Dorothy Semke; his daughters Laura (Dan) Ringer, Christine (Matthew) Kuckuk and Linda (Michael) Kautzky; his eight grandchildren Robert (Lauren), Beth (Jackson), Rachel (Craig), Meghan (Jeff), Jennifer, David, Jenna, and Carina; and his six great-grandchildren Landen, Emily, Breck, Corbin, Audrey and Dorothy.For information regarding Edward’s July 15, 2024 Celebration of Life, please contact his daughter Christine at [email protected]. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the Alzheimer’s Association.
