Betty Jean Rice

Betty Jean Rice

Age 78

Of Washington DC

Betty Jean Smith Rice passed away peacefully at her home in Washington, DC, on Tuesday, December 28 after a long battle with Alzheimer's disease. She is survived by her loving husband of 58 years, Gene Rice, her daughter and son-in-law Jane and Richard Accosta of Miami, FL, and her son Jonathan and daughter-in-law Nancy of Charlottesville, VA.

Betty Smith was born March 7, 1932 in Shawanee, TN. She cherished that community and the extended family she had there. It was a place she brought to life in the many stories she enjoyed telling about her early life there. She attended Powell Valley High School where she excelled at both athletics and academics, playing on the women's basketball team and graduating as the class of 1949's salutatorian.

She went on to Berea College where she met and married Gene Rice in February 1952. The couple lived in New York City from 1952 to 1958 and then moved to Washington, DC in 1958 where they started a family. She was a devoted spouse and mother. She was guided throughout her life by a strong sense of fairness, justice, and compassion. She was an early and ardent supporter of civil rights. She was also concerned with the plight of the survivors of the Chernobyl nuclear disaster and made two separate trips to Russia and Belarus.

Alzheimer's took a steady toll from the spring of 2004, but the most fundamental parts of her personality persisted until the end: an irrepressible good humor and enjoyment of life; love for her family and friends; and a quiet but firm dignity. If Heaven didn't already exist, it would have had to be invented for her.

In lieu of flowers, the family asks that donations be made to: the Dr. Gene and Mrs. Betty Rice Scholarship at Howard University's School of Divinity; the Alzheimer's Association; your local hospice.

Visitation will be held at the Reece funeral home on Sunday, January 2, from 5-7pm. The funeral service and going home celebration will begin at 7pm. Interment will be at Scott Cemetery in Shawanee, TN, on Monday, January 3, at 10am. Reece Funeral Home 869-3651 or www.reecefh.com to send condolences.