On July 1, seven weeks after winning her Bachelor of Science degree from the University of Colorado at Boulder, Pamela Kay Boyd Rodda, 52, succumbed to lymphoma. Her passing saddened students and faculty at the School of Journalism and Mass Communication, where she was a news-editorial major.
In 1995, Pam Rodda had returned to the University of Colorado to resume studies postponed 30 years earlier. She'd taken time to raise a family and tour the country as a referee and high-ranking judge for the United States Figure Skating Association.
Pam left behind two children, Michelle and Danny, and her husband, Dan. She and Dan met and fell in love at CU in 1964, but he said she never lost sight of her goal to graduate. After her increasingly debilitating illness had been identified as cancer in January, some doctors had advised her to delay school while undergoing chemotherapy.
But, Dan said, she decided to go for the degree.
"I'm glad she did," he said. "Graduation day was one of the happiest of her life."
Assistant Dean Steve Jones said Pam's experiences were valuable to the School, and he provided this anecdote."It seems that one of the students in the 20-22 age bracket was taking his studies too lightly. Pam pulled him aside and 'let him have it' as to how important the degree was and to start 'earning' it. It not only gave the student a dose of reality, but also endeared Pam to her fellow students. Here was a person coming back after many years and proving to them the importance of an education."
Coincidentally Steve Jones's wife, a nurse at Longmont United Hospital, developed a bond with Pam during treatments.
"Going back to school was something she thought about for a long time,'' Wilma Jones said. "After she began treatments it was a struggle sometimes. But she didn't give up."
Steve Jones said that with treatment under way, Pam began to see the light at the end of the tunnel. From across a sea of black caps and gowns in Macky Auditorium's foyer May 15, Pam waved to him from a circle of friends, a big smile on her face.
"She was calling, 'I made it, I made it,' " Jones said. "That's the picture many of us will keep of Pam."
Contributions may be made to The Leukemia Society of America, Rocky Mountain Chapter, 621 17th Ave., Suite 1550, Denver, Colo. 80293-0701.
