Memorial Service to be Held February 5 for Late State Rep. Rodney Driver
Thursday, February 03, 2022
Rod Driver, 89, of Richmond, passed away peacefully on Sunday, January 16, 2022, at the Saint Elizabeth Home. He was the beloved husband of the late Carole J. Driver. Born in London, England, he was the son of the late William and Marjorie Driver. Rod and his family lived in London during the Battle of Britain and the Blitz. In 1945, the family left for the United States and settled in Minneapolis, MN.
Rod studied at the University of Minnesota where he earned both his B.S. and M.S. in Electrical Engineering, as well as his PhD. in Mathematics. He was passionate about math and was a professor at the University of Rhode Island from 1969 until his retirement in 1998. Throughout his career, he authored three mathematics books and dozens of research papers. Rod was a member of the American Mathematical Society and the Mathematical Association of America, and lectured in Europe as well as across the United States.
While studying at the University of Minnesota, Rod met Carole at “ladies choice” dance class and was delighted when Carole chose him to be her dance partner. The couple exchanged vows in September of 1955 and they shared 65 wonderful years together. They were both active members of the Unitarian Universalist Congregation East Greenwich and then of UUC Southern Rhode Island.
Since the early 1950s, Rod devoted much of his time to foreign policy and human rights. He was a member of Amnesty International, the American Friends Service Committee, SEARCH for Justice and Equality in Palestine/Israel, and the Sierra Club. Rod was heavily involved in politics by campaigning for other candidates and running for office himself on several occasions.
His political activism began in earnest at the beginning of the Vietnam war, writing letters to the editor, hounding TV news anchors (in-person visits to John Chancellor and Roger Mudd), and running for congress 1960s as a Republican in New Mexico. Rod was equally critical of Democrats and Republicans on this issue. Then the 1980’s era of “dirty secret wars” inspired Rod to run for office again. Rod was elected as a delegate to the 1986 Rhode Island Constitutional Convention, and soon after was elected to the Rhode Island House of Representatives from 1987 to 1995.
Time and time again Rod would find himself on the unpopular side of many important issues, such as smoking in public, casinos in RI, and wars in Central America, but eventually the public (and Congress) would come around on these issues.
Among Rod’s accomplishments were his spearheading of the efforts to
• ban smoking in public places,
• stop the construction of a Casino in RI,
• fixing ambiguously written bills that would exacerbate the savings and loan crisis,
• cleaning up the state house of representatives by ending the practice of taping down the yes button on their desk so the representative wouldn’t have to be present for a vote.
• supporting a woman’s right to choose and supporting LGBT rights
• Working for human rights in Palestine/Israel
When broadcast media would not air his commercials on TV regarding the inhumane treatment of Palestinians by Israel, he found himself running for statewide office again. (As a candidate, the network TV stations could now be sued for not airing his commercials.) Despite running as an independent in this race, he came in a strong 2nd in a 3-way race for congress.
Rod was later reelected in 2008 where he represented the 39th District until 2010.
Well ahead of his time, Rod was an advocate for recycling and reducing waste. He put his environmental concerns into practice by driving energy efficient vehicles and meticulously logging his gas mileage so as to reduce his carbon footprint. Rod was especially proud of his solar-heated home (one of the first in RI and the nation) that Spencer Dickinson built with Rod and Carole’s help in 1979.
Always a teacher, Rod was known for his educational toys and games. He enjoyed showing off various magnets, sterling engines, and levitating tops while explaining the science and physics behind how they worked. Rod somehow always found a way to work a math problem into any situation and wouldn’t let anyone off the hook if he thought they reached a solution by guessing.
Rod was known for his infectious and booming laugh that could be heard from a mile away.
His laugh only grew louder as he would inevitably butcher his lengthy jokes. The only thing funnier than Rod’s “goblet joke” was listening to him try to remember how to deliver his lines. Rod was always up for sharing a good joke over endless bowls of ice cream.
Rod will be missed deeply. In addition to his late wife, Carole Driver, Rod was the loving father of David Driver (wife, Joyce Yokoe), Karen Driver (late former husband, Mark Lussier) and Bruce Driver (wife, Linda Driver); devoted grandfather of Jason Driver, Austin Driver, Kristin Lussier, Jenny Lussier, Sarah Driver and Daniel Driver; great-grandfather of Addison Driver and Jonah Driver; brother to Vera Carlson and the late Walt Driver. He is also survived by many nieces and nephews.
His Memorial Service will be held at 11 am on Saturday, February 5, 2022, in the Fagan-Quinn Funeral Home, 825 Boston Neck Road, North Kingstown. Burial will be private at the convenience of the family. A live streaming of his Memorial Service will be held at 11 am on Saturday, February 5, 2022, and may be found on the funeral home Facebook page at www.facebook.com/QuinnFuneralHomes/live/
In lieu of flowers, please consider making memorial contributions to a charity of your choice.
