Calvin C. Rice

Calvin C. Rice, 92, went to be with his Savior on December 31, 2022, in Lenexa, KS. Calvin is preceded by his wife, Martha, his parents, Clarence, and Esther Rice, and his 2 brothers, Virgil, and Clyde.  He is survived by 1 daughter and 4 sons, 20 grandchildren, and 11 great-grandchildren.

Calvin was born on a dairy farm near Williamsport, Indiana on March 20, 1930.  When he was 3 years old, his family moved to a dairy farm 10 miles east of Emporia, KS where he lived until starting high school in 1943. He attended a one-room schoolhouse until his 9 ^th grade year, when the family moved to Emporia.  He graduated from Emporia High School in 1947 and went on to earn a BA degree in education from Kansas State Teachers’ College in Emporia, also attending Greenville College in Greenville, Illinois for one year.  He later earned an MA degree in education from Kansas State Teachers’ College. He was a member of the National Guard unit in Emporia in 1948-49.

While in Emporia, he met, fell in love with, and married Martha Stoner – a marriage made in heaven.  Calvin and Martha had 5 children – Stephen, Stanley, Sharon, David, and Daniel.

Calvin was employed at Boeing Aircraft in Wichita, KS from 1951-54.  Calvin accepted a position as an elementary school teacher in Udall, KS in 1954. Moving to Miltonvale, KS in 1957, he became an elementary school principal.   In 1961, he took a job in Lawrence, KS as an elementary school principal.  He was principal of 3 different Lawrence schools from 1961-1993.  During many of the summer breaks, he worked as a house painter.  After his retirement in 1993, he acquired 3 rental houses in Lawrence.

Calvin was a member of the Lawrence Free Methodist Church (now called River City Church) for all 56+ years that he lived in Lawrence.  He had a deep love of God and His word.  He faithfully served God and his church in many roles there – Sunday School superintendent, treasurer, pastor’s cabinet member, building committee member, and church administrator.  He and Martha made many friends there and had the respect of the entire congregation.

Calvin enjoyed the beauty of God’s creation.  He took his family on many summer vacations, especially to the mountains of Colorado.  He implanted this love of the mountains to his children and his grandchildren.  His older great-grandchildren seem to have caught the bug already.  After Calvin’s retirement, he continued to travel and enjoyed seeing new places and familiar ones.  He had 7 more years with Martha before she died in 2000.  His travels often included his brother Virgil and Virgil’s wife Margaret.

The visitation will be held at the River City Church, 3001 Lawrence Ave., Lawrence, KS, 66047 at 12:00 pm on Saturday, January 7, 2023. The celebration of Calvin’s lifewill be held at River City Church at 2:00 pm on Saturday, January 7, 2023, with Larry Baldridge officiating. Interment to follow at Oak Hill Cemetery, 1605 Oak Hill Avenue, Lawrence, KS following the celebration of life service.

In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made to River City Church designating Debt Retirement, 3001 Lawrence Ave, Lawrence, KS 66047, or Lakeview Village designating to Neighbors helping Neighbors, 9100 Park Street, Lenexa, KS 66215.