The fourth of Mary and John Rice’s seven children, Patrick “Pat” William Rice ’70, JD ’74 was born on June 12, 1948, in Great Falls. He graduated from Great Falls Central High School and earned a B.S. at SCU before pursuing post-graduate studies at the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill. He returned to Santa Clara to earn his law degree. After graduation, Pat returned to Great Falls and began his lifelong career with Transystems (Rice Truck Lines), a company founded by his father during WWII. Pat worked there until his unexpected death. Pat’s primary focus was his family and the people with whom he worked. He also had great devotion to Easter Seals-Goodwill, following in the footsteps of his brother Mike. Pat served on the organization’s regional board beginning in 1990 and ending with his death. He was proud of the work Easter Seals-Goodwill does and wholeheartedly believed in the organization’s mission. He once said in a newspaper interview, “In my volunteer work, I like to be involved in organizations that serve people.” His devotion to Easter Seals-Goodwill did not go unnoticed. In 2009, Pat was chosen as volunteer of the year from among the 50,000 Easter Seals volunteers worldwide. At age 70, he passed away on Jan. 16, 2019, due to complications from heart disease. Pat is survived by his siblings, Kathy, Peter (Stella), Rosemary (Ray), and Dan Rice ’73 (Jackie); sister-in-law Patti; nephews and nieces John, Ashley ’00, Carrie, Jason, Liz, Katie, Maureen, Daniel, Errol and Curran; several great-nieces and nephews; and longtime family friends Allan and Tina Rabbitt. He was preceded in death by his parents; brother Mike; nephew Barney; and infant sister, Maureen.

20 Feb 2019