Our hearts are heavy as we share the passing of Jessie Rodell, former ASH staff and expat community cornerstone, who died on Monday, January 18, 2021 from her battle with cancer. Many will know her name in some way, whether it be from her 26 year career at ASH or from her active volunteerism in a plethora of boards and committees. Over the decades, Jessie gave so much of her heart and spirit to supporting the expatriate community, whether it was directly ASH or in the community beyond; her helping hand was always extended to anyone who needed it. This is how many know her, and how she will be remembered, as we recall our own personal moments with her.

 

Jessie’s story at ASH began in the early 1980’s, when she took on a role to teach calligraphy classes. This led to her securing the position of High School Secretary in 1985, for then principal John Heard. Over the years she climbed the professional ladder; to Admissions Officer and then to Admissions Director; in 1992 she became External Relations Director, still managing student admissions alongside fostering and developing community and “external” relationships. She held the title of External Relations Director until December 2010, when she celebrated her retirement after 26 years of dedicated service to ASH and the thousands of students she worked with in her key role.

 

Outside of ASH her list of activities and contributions is extensive; she was president of the American Women’s Club and an active member for decades; held prominent positions on the board of ACCESS and AmCham; and supported key community events through her membership of the OAR - Overseas Americans Remember. Her friend and fellow AWC member Georgia wrote an account of her volunteerism in the AWC Magazine September 2020 edition, giving a personal insight to this “member extraordinaire”. Her dear friend Roberta, fellow ASH staff Alumni, wrote a heartwarming tribute to her friend entitled "Remembering Jessie", where she shares the memories of working with Jessie over the years and her passion to support children with needs; Roberta says “she was their strongest, most determined advocate”.

 

To honor one of Jessie’s final wishes, The Jessie Rodell Educational Award was recently established to help keep her passion and memory alive. While still in its early stages, this international community-wide award will help a person in the Netherlands further their education with the help of the FAWCO Foundation. For questions about donations, please email awcthehague.parliamentarian@gmail.com. As we say goodbye to our friend and colleague, we encourage to you share your memory of Jessie below or via the Facebook group dedicated to her memory.