Judith "Edy" Rodberg

Judith Edelleen (Edy) Rodberg passed away after a brief illness on April 11, 2022 surrounded by her loving family.

     Services will be at 10:30 AM Saturday April 16, 2022 at St. James United Methodist Church (in Morningside). Rev. Merlyne Smith will officiate. A private burial will take place at a later date. Visitation with family present will be from 5-7 PM Friday with a prayer service at 7PM at Meyer Brothers Colonial Chapel.

     Edy was born February 18, 1940 in Ida Grove, IA, the daughter of Edward and E. Eileen (Smith) Nellist. She attended school in Ida Grove until 5^th grade when the family moved to Sioux City, where she attended Bryant Elementary School, Woodrow Wilson Junior High School and she graduated from Central High School in 1958. She loved calling it “The Castle on the Hill”.

     Edy married Tom Hindman on July 13, 1958. From this marriage there were four children, Sandi, Sherry, Darren and Brian. She lost Tom on May 4, 1974. She married Gene Rodberg on August 4, 1984.

     After the death of her first husband, she went to work at IBP in Dakota City, NE. She went on to work there for 18 years during which time she became a Union Steward. She would always speak fondly of all the people she worked with at “The Beef”. She continued to stay in touch with her friends from IBP having lunch with many of them monthly. After she retired from IBP, she worked in the Sioux City Public School System for another 18 years retiring in December of 2014. She enjoyed being a crossing guard, a recess monitor, but she truly loved being the fun lunch lady that all kids adored. She loved her Clark Cougars!

     At some point she started selling Avon. She loved doing this as a way to keep in touch with and making new friends. She loved Avon so much that at the end of the month, instead of making a profit, she usually ended up owing money.

     Edy was a long time member of St. James United Methodist Church. She so enjoyed her 8:30 Sunday morning worship group.

     When she met her second husband, Gene (Leonard) Rodberg, her life changed in many ways. She learned to ski, she got to enjoy her love of dancing and she became a world traveler. She and Gene took many many trips both in the United States and abroad. They loved to take cruises and with Gene’s good people skills they did a lot of that travelling on Penn Corp’s dime.

     Edy was a lover of bowling, fast pitch softball, flowers, dancing, animals (especially her cats), and the Iowa Hawkeyes.

     She loved all of her grandkids and great grandkids. They all have fond memories of their fun Grma Edy ~ from her chasing after the car down the driveway waving at them until she was out of sight, to taking them sledding at Grandview Park, to stopping at all the baseball stadiums from IA to FL.

     She and Grandpa Leonard took some of the grandkids to Disney World in pairs, stopping to eat at EVERY Cracker Barrel all along the way. Some remember that long car ride to Florida with fondness, some not so much.

     She is survived by two daughters, Sandi (Mike) Laird of Manassas, VA and Sherry (Bruce) Hindman of Maypearl, TX, two sons, Darren (Autumn) Hindman of Appleton, WI and Brian (Dawn) Hindman of Sioux City, IA, twelve grandchildren, Thomas Hindman, John (Melissa) Yackley, Sarah (Jonathan) Ploeger, Jesse (Misty) Hindman, Kevin Yackley, Jennifer (Tadd) Biederstedt, Stephanie (Kel) Hindman, Nolan Hindman, Steven Hindman, Ethan Laird, John Hindman and Jason Hindman, and thirteen great grandchildren, Paige, Kylee, Kahlor, Emma, Kessa, Kaslyn, Harper, Asher, Kelby, Kyslor, Rowan, Harrison and Bodhi. Four sisters, Sandra Busch, Dawn Christenson, Vicki Rinks and Lynn Enright, Sister-in-law Michele Nellist, Brothers-in-law W. J. (Dixie) Hindman and Monte (Kathy) Cleveland.

     She is preceded in death by her parents, Glenn and Eileen Phillips and Edward Nellist, her beloved brother Ronnie Nellist and both of her husbands, Tom Hindman and Gene Rodberg.

      Edy’s family would like to thank St. Croix Hospice for the wonderful care they gave to Edy. Her doctor, Kelly Bean NP. And they would like to give a very very special loving thank you to all of the staff at Sunrise Community Center, especially the “angels” in the Sunlight Center, who are too numerous to mention them all by name. They treated her like family. She was loved like their own “grandma”.

     If you would like to watch the Video Live Feed Funeral @ St. James United Methodist Church. Please go to Facebook to SCSaintJames on Saturday April 16 @ 10:30 AM.

     Memorials can be made in her name to St. Croix Hospice or St. James United Methodist Church.