Bradley A. Hodges

Bradley A. Hodges, 61, formerly of Rochester passed away on Wednesday, January 16, 2019 in Huntington, West Virginia. He had been ill one month. He died of B-cell lymphoma. Brad was born December 5, 1957 in Waukegan, Illinois to Alfred (Fred) and Colleen (Ceminsky) Hodges. He was the first born of three sons. At the age of nine months, he moved with his parents to Rochester where he grew up, graduating from John Marshall High School in 1976. He then attended St. John's University, Collegeville, Minnesota graduating with a degree in Psychology. After graduation, he moved to Chicago where he worked for several years. In 1986 Brad retuned to Rochester where he found challenging work as a freelance field recordist for Minnesota Public Radio station KLSE. The opportunity came about after he lodged a phone complaint with the then general manager about the quality of the station's signal. She invited him to visit KLSE's Marquette Bank building studios for a longer conversation. The result was an offer. The station needed someone to record concerts at various venues around the area - Mayo Civic Auditorium, Assisi Heights, Luther College and others - using state-of the-art microphones and recorders. If Brad were able to master the equipment and get himself to the rehearsals and performances, the job was his. Brad soon proved that he possessed a keen ability to hear music and produce it in excellent recordings. "His were, without doubt, 'ears' that many of us were envious of," one former broadcasting colleague remembers. Brad's next challenge came when he accepted a position as a Rehabilitation Specialist at the University of Wisconsin - Stout. After several years there, he moved to Baltimore, MD, working as a Technology Accessibility Specialist at the National Federation of the Blind for many years. Brad then moved to Huntington when he became a writer for Access World online magazine for the American Federation for the Blind. In 2011, he started his own consulting firm, Accessibility Solutions, providing service and training to the visually impaired. He was also under contract to provide services to veterans for the Veterans Administration of West Virginia. For many years, he served on various Federal Communication Commission (FCC) committees concerning web, internet and cell phone accessibility for the visually impaired. He was serving as president of the Huntington Chapter of the National Federation of the Blind at the time of his death. He was a brilliant young man, very loving and very caring. There wasn't any subject that he couldn't converse about. His brothers used to call him a walking encyclopedia. He shared his knowledge freely and his deep love for all. Brad is survived by his loving parents, Fred and Colleen; his brother, David and wife, Sherry of Ave Maria, Florida; his brother, Michael and wife, Katie of Chanhassen, Minnesota; nephews Thomas and Matthew and his niece, Taylor. He was preceded in death by his paternal and fraternal grandparents. His family will miss him dearly. A Mass of Christian Burial will be held at 11:00 a.m. Saturday, February 9, 2019 at Saint Pius the X Catholic Church, 1315 12th Avenue NW with the Reverend Russell Scepaniak officiating. Visitation will be held one hour prior to the service. Internment will be at Calvary Cemetery. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to The National Federation of the Blind or St. Pius X Catholic Church in memory of Bradley. Arrangements are entrusted to Ranfranz and Vine Funeral Homes 5421 Royal Place NW Rochester, MN 55901 (507) 289-3600.