F OCUS - American Foreign Service Association

Comforts, that specialized in animalrelated
products. In 2005, the
Hodgsons moved to Cornwall, Vt.,
where she pursued her interest in
music and indulged her love of
nature, history and genealogy.
Friends remember Mrs. Hodgson
as fun-loving, endlessly curious, gutsy
and beautiful. Her final resting place
will be at the Hodgson family plot in
Dover, Mass. Her family would like
to acknowledge the care and dedication
of Hospice and the Wellspring
Singers.
Mrs. Hodgson’s earlier marriage to
Robin Porter of Wickford, R.I., ended
in divorce.
She was predeceased by her parents,
Reginald and Edna Eagles, and
her beloved brother, Harrison. She is
survived by her husband of 20 years,
Richard Hodgson; her four children:
Carl Porter of Longmont, Colo.,
Christopher Porter of New York,
N.Y., Sarah Bell of Peace Dale, R.I.,
and William Porter of Shoreham, Vt.;
and four grandchildren, Lily and Rosy
Bell, Christopher Porter and Beatrice
Porter. She is also survived by two
stepdaughters, Jenni Brady of Medfield,
Mass., and Heather DePaola of
Dover, Mass.; two stepgrandchilden,
Zack Brady and Mckinlee DePaola;
her brother, Sandy Eagles of LaVerne,
Calif.; her sister, Joan Webb of Cortez,
Fla.; and many nieces and nephews.
Gifts in her memory can be sent to
Hospice Volunteer Services of Addison
County, P.O. Box 772, Middlebury
VT 05753, the San Francisco
Society for the Prevention of Cruelty
to Animals, or the National Wildlife
Federation.
Barbara M. Johnson, 76, a retired
Foreign Service consular officer,
died from ovarian cancer on Feb. 2 at
82 FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL/JULY-AUGUST 2008
I N M EMORY
Springhouse Assisted Living in Bethesda,
Md., where she had resided for
several months.
Born and raised in New Bedford,
Mass., Ms. Johnson later attended
Dillard University in New Orleans
and Columbia University in New York
City. She worked for Con Edison in
New York City from 1955 to 1963.
In 1963, Ms. Johnson joined the
Foreign Service. Her first overseas
posting was to Bangkok. Subsequent
assignments took her to Brussels,
Copenhagen, Saigon, Port of Spain,
Kinshasa, Fort-de-France, Lima,
Freetown, Dar es Salaam, Hamilton
and Accra. She returned to Washington,
D.C., to retire in 1996.
Ms. Johnson’s love of travel did not
wane after retirement, and she continued
to accept short, challenging
When Actually Employed consular
assignments from 1997 to 2002 in
Accra, Jeddah, Bahrain, Sanaa, Amman,
Sofia, Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh
City.
The tales from her many assignments
could fill a book. Friends recall
one memorable story from her time in
Bukavu, a remote consulate in Zaire.
She was called upon to courier mail
on long and arduous trips over rough
terrain from one African country to
another. Longing for fresh fruit and
vegetables, she would pay as much as
$10 for a single apple when she could
find one. She often spoke of the natural
beauty of Africa, a sad downside
to which was the sight of beautiful elephants
killed by poachers for their
ivory.
Ms. Johnson had maintained a residence
in Washington, D.C., since the
1970s, where she enjoyed getting
together with friends and trying new
or exotic cuisines. She also enjoyed
playing golf and attending the symphony
at the Kennedy Center. An
avid walker, she explored many different
areas of the city, often hiking all
the way to Arlington Cemetery from
her home. She volunteered at Arena
Stage and at the Washington Home,
where she visited many patients and
friends.
Although she did not own an animal
at the time of her death, she
adored her friends’ dogs, horses, cats
and exotic birds, spoiled them with
treats, and never hesitated to pet-sit
whenever asked.
Throughout her travels Ms. Johnson
made many friends of all nationalities.
She had godchildren in Africa,
Denmark and the United States. FS
colleagues recall Ms. Johnson as very
efficient and competent, but also as a
compassionate consular officer who
mentored many young Foreign
Service officers.
Although she leaves no immediate
survivors, Ms. Johnson is remembered
by the many friends whom she
touched in very special ways.
Wallace Edward Keiderling, 77,
a retired FSO with USIA, died of
complications from a stroke and arteriosclerosis
on April 9 in Cochabamba,
Bolivia.
Born in Westfield, N.J., Mr. Keiderling
served in the U.S. Army from
1948 to 1949. He graduated from
Oklahoma State University in 1954
and received a master’s degree from
the University of Florida in 1962.
Mr. Keiderling was sent as a
trainee to the Binational Center in
Cochabamba in 1962 and became its
director two years later. There he met
his wife, the former María del Rosario
“Charo” Soruco, whom he courted
with rides on his bicycle. Colleagues
recall his carting Lake Titicaca reed
boats over the mountains to Cochabamba
and playing “wallyball” and
basketball with Mr. Keiderling during
those years.