Wm. Chester Rice

Wm. Chester Rice
May 30, 1911 - November 25, 2004
Keota, Iowa
Visitation: 1:00 p.m. - 2:00 p.m. November 27, 2004 at United Church of Faith
Funeral Service: 2:00 p.m. November 27, 2004 at United Church of Faith
Interment: November 27, 2004 at Fairfield Evergreen Cemetery
Wm. Chester Rice, age 93 of Keota, Iowa, passed away Thursday, November 25, 2004, at University of Iowa Hospitals in Iowa City, Iowa following a brief illness. He was born the son of Jose and Kate Staats Rice near Packwood, Iowa, on May 30, 1911. He attended a country grade school and graduated in 1929 from Pleasant Plain High School. After attending Iowa Success Business College in Ottumwa, Iowa, he worked as a secretary for the War Department in Washington, D.C., the Rock Island Arsenal and in a Des Moines government position. On June 14, 1941, he married Reithel Kann of Fairfield in Crown Point, Indiana. They resided in Richland for 10 years. He served in the Army during World War II as a secretary for the Armed Forces Headquarters at Fort Knox, Kentucky. After Army service he and his wife owned and operated the Excel Popcorn Company for 40 years, and raised quality livestock. After residing in Richland they lived in Fairfield for several years, then farmed near Libertyville, Iowa, for 20 years. After retiring from farming, they settled in Keota. He was always active and in later years enjoyed woodworking and gardening. They were avid travelers, both in the U.S. and abroad. He was a member of the Keota United Church of Faith and was a former VFW member. He was a lifelong Methodist. Survivors include his wife Reithel and two daughters: Marcia and her husband John Whitt of Bethany, Missouri; and Patricia Rice of Coralville, Iowa; four grandchildren; four great grandchildren; a niece Barbara and husband John Pfiffner of Mount Vernon, Iowa; a nephew John Rumer and wife Janyce of Urbandale, Iowa; and several great nieces and nephews. He was preceded in death by his parents, five sisters and an infant brother. He was the last of his immediate family and lived to be the oldest.
Memorial may be given to the United Church of Faith or the Wilson Memorial Library.