John Timothy Rice

April 7, 1948 – June 27, 2022

We note, with sadness, the passing of our friend and classmate, John Timothy “Tim” Rice.  Tim was born April 4, 1948 to John Edward and Margaret Ruth Rice in Gallipolis, Ohio. Tim moved with his parents and sister, Sharon Ann, to Salt Lake City when he was in his youth.  He made many friends among his Skyline High School classmates, who delighted in his sense of humor and playful, life-of-the-party antics.  Tim graduated from Skyline High School in 1966.  

After high school graduation, Tim returned to Ohio to study at Ohio State University.  He returned to Salt Lake to finish his bachelor’s degree in political science from the University of Utah. 

Following his college graduation, Tim began a career with the Salt Lake office of the AFL-CIO as a labor negotiator, and as the organization’s Democratic liaison.  Tim resigned his position with the AFL-CIO to take a position with the Utah Department of Workforce Services in Salt Lake City, where he trained older, displaced workers for employment.  Tim also worked with ex-inmates in a re-entry program to help them find employment after incarceration. 

Tim married Wendy Edwards November 26, 1976 in Golden, Colorado.  They enjoyed a marriage of twenty-six years, during which they devoted great energy to the Democratic Party.  Tim and Wendy both served as convention delegates, and collected campaign memorabilia from Democratic events, locally and nationally. Tim’s favorite souvenirs included a personalized picture of Pres. Jimmy Carter shaking Tim’s hand, and a menu signed by LBJ.  Tim and Wendy loved the Utah terrain, and were avid campers.  They also enjoyed a household of cats, and Tim’s collection of movies and vintage audio equipment (often used in his entertaining “experimental” recordings).  Wendy passed away February 21, 2002. After Wendy’s death, Tim met Kathleen Mead, with whom he shared many happy years.  She also preceded him in death.

Tim developed diabetes, and suffered a stroke near the end of his life.  He was recuperating at The Ridge, an assisted living facility, where he passed away in 2022.

Tim is survived by his sister, Sharon Ann Rice Schneider, and Sharon’s children, Jessica Sequinot, Gwendolyn Schneider, Adrienne Schneider, and David Timothy Edwards (Tim’s namesake).  While Tim and Wendy did not have children, he often quipped, “You all conceived those Wendy and I forgot to.” Tim was preceded in death by his parents, John and Ruth, his step-mother, Hazel (a second mother to Tim), his wife, Wendy, and his companion, Kathleen.

Information on Tim’s life contributed by Adrienne Schneider, Paul Rolly, and Shonnie Hays.