PETER RODIER
The Royal School for the Blind, the Royal British Legion, Leatherhead Night Hostel and Leatherhead United Charities were just some of the organisations represented at a service of thanksgiving at Leatherhead Parish Church for the life of Peter Rodier, who died suddenly last month (September 1992).
Mr Rodier, who was 81, had lived in Leatherhead since 1947, first in Highlands Road, and then at Overdale, St Nicholas Hill. He and his wife, Marguerite had made their home available for many church and other social occasions.
On the morning before his death he had listened to his daughter, violinist Kitty Loveridge jr, rehearsing in Leatherhead Parish Church for a concert the next evening. He went home for lunch and died there. Mrs Loveridge insisted on continuing with the concert.
Marguerite Rodier, daughter Kitty, son Charles, Peter Rodier
at the wedding of
Rosalind Killick, their neighbour's daughter, to Terry
Millward, on 14 Aug 1965.
source: the Millwards
Peter Rodier was of Huguenot descent and proud of it. After studying at Cambridge University, he joined city solicitors Allen and Overy. He made his legal expertise available to many organisations in a voluntary capacity.
He served for two terms as churchwarden in the 1960s and was a diocesan pastoral assistant.
After his retirement in 1976 he became a governor of the Royal School for the Blind. Former director, the Rev Bernard Coote, said: "His legal knowledge was invaluable, and he was a very good fundraiser, but chiefly he had such a great individual concern for everybody at the school. He was also a particular support to me personally, at a time of great changes."
During the war Mr Rodier served in the Western Desert. He joined the Royal British Legion after the war and collected for the Poppy Appeal in Leatherhead for over 30 years, organising the street collections for 15 years.
He was a trustee of the Leatherhead United charities and a founder of the Leatherhead Night Hostel.
Life had never been the same for Peter since his wife Marguerite died two years ago. He nursed her with great devotion through a progressively debilitating illness and insisted on looking after her at home.
Alison Wright
this page created 1 Oct 2002: updated 22 Feb 2009: If you have more photos of Peter or further remembrance to add, please contact Frank Haslam, the editor of these pages.