Roger Hodson

Memorial services for Roger Hodson, 91, Perry, will be at 11 a.m. Wednesday at the Perry United Methodist Church. Burial with military honors will precede the memorial service, at 10 a.m. Wednesday at Oak Ridge Cemetery, Perry. Mr. Hodson died Friday, Aug. 22, 2008, at his home from complications of Parkinson’s disease. He was born May 26, 1917, in Hallowell, the son of Charles Ace and Lillian Jason Raymer Hodson. He moved to Columbus at an early age. After graduating from Columbus schools, he attended Kansas University, where he graduated and received his Army commission as a 2nd Lieutenant in May 1941. He was called to active duty in September 1941. After serving during World War II, he returned to KU and received his law degree in 1950.After the attack on Pearl Harbor, Mr. Hodson sailed from San Francisco with the first American Expeditionary Force to Hawaii, where he served for 11 months. He then served in the European Theater after attending anti-aircraft school at Camp Davis, N.C., and joined the 491st AAA Battalion at Camp Stewart, Ga. He returned from Europe after the war in October 1945 and joined the Army Reserves. He graduated from the General Command and Staff College at Fort Leavenworth, and then taught GCSC classes to reservists in Topeka. He retired from the Army Reserves as a lieutenant colonel in 1969, having served more than 28 years.Mr. Hodson farmed in the Perry area from 1945 until he retired in 1993. He also practiced law, specializing in income tax. As a longtime member of the Perry United Methodist Church, he served as Sunday school superintendent, Sunday school teacher and lay leader, and was a member of the choir for 50 years. He served as city clerk of Perry for 34 years, retiring in 1993. He was a past member of the Lions Club, American Legion Post 142 and the Lawrence Knife and Fork Club. He was a volunteer for the fire department and served on the Kentucky Township board. He served on the Committee for Higher Learning at KU for many years.He and his wife traveled throughout the U.S. and overseas. They especially enjoyed Japan, Thailand, Hong Kong, England, France and Hawaii. Mr. Hodson was an avid KU sports fan, attending KU basketball games for more 40 years.He married to Margaret Brown on Jan. 17, 1943, at Perry United Methodist Church. She survives, of the home.Other survivors include a son, Chuck Hodson and wife Amy, Topeka; three daughters, Sherry Weber and husband Terry, of Tokyo and Topeka, Peggy Griswold and husband Doug, Wichita, and Janet Macek and husband John, Shawnee; five grandchildren, Mindy and Molly Hodson, Jeff and Kevin Griswold, and Matt Macek; and several nieces and nephews.He was preceded in death by his brothers, Raymer and Kenneth, and a sister, Doris Hupe.Friends may call from 6:30 p.m. to 8 p.m. Tuesday at the church.The family suggests memorials to the church or the American Parkinson Disease Association Inc., sent in care of Barnett Funeral Home, P.O. Box 416, Oskaloosa, KS 66066.