Robert L. Rice
1929 ~ 2007
Robert L. Rice, our loving husband, father, grandfather, and great grandfather returned to the arms of his Heavenly Father on August 29, 2007. He passed away peacefully, surrounded by his family, after courageously battling multiple myeloma cancer for the past three years.Bob was born on August 15, 1929, in Farmington, Utah to LeGrande and Mabel Rice. He was the second of five children. As a child of the depression, Bob learned the value of hard work, integrity, and self reliance while working on the family dairy and hay farm. These qualities would be exemplified by Bob throughout his life.
Bob graduated from Davis High School in 1947. It was while at Davis that he met the "Love of his Life", Joyce Talbot. They were married September 10, 1949, and later sealed in the Salt Lake Temple. They have been sweethearts and best friends for the past 58 years. They are the parents of six children.
In 1954 Bob won the "Mr. Utah Body Building Competition." His interest in health and physical fitness led him to open a small gym on 5th South and Main Street in downtown Salt Lake City. Through Bob's hard work and leadership, that modest gym grew into the "European Health Spas", which at the time was the largest health club chain in the nation. Because of Bob's efforts, millions of people have been introduced to physical fitness and enjoyed better health.
In 1972, Bob was invited by President Richard Nixon to serve on the President's Council of Physical Fitness and Sports. Bob has received many local and national awards for his business achievements. Among these are The Horatio Alger Award, the Golden Plate Achievement Award, and the Utah Heart Association "Heart of Utah Award." Bob also was inducted into the Utah Sports Hall of Fame and the University of Utah College of Business Hall of Fame. He received an Honorary Doctorate from the University of Utah in 1999.
Bob was a Community Leader and a Philanthropist who gave generously of his time and resources to many worthy causes, including the Utah Symphony and Opera, Utah Youth Village, the LDS Church Missionary Fund, and BYU Hawaii. Bob's favorite philanthropic interest, however, was the University of Utah. In 1972, Bob and Joyce made a generous donation to the University's Athletic Department for the expansion of the stadium and for scholarships. The University honored him by naming the stadium after him. Bob and Joyce's work and generosity toward the University has continued since that time. At the time of his passing, Bob was serving on the University's National Advisory Board and was chairman of its Health Sciences
Council.
Bob was a devoted member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. He gave freely of his time and energy to serve others in many callings, including Bishop, High Councilor, Stake President, and most recently as a Sealer in the Salt Lake Temple. In all of these positions, Bob thoroughly enjoyed the people he associated with and the service he was able to render.
The accomplishment that Bob was most proud of was the family that he and Joyce have raised. Bob loved to be with his children and grandchildren, and he took great interest in all of their activities. Family trips to Lake Powell, Phoenix, Hawaii, and Sun Valley are rich with memories. He has tutored his family with his example of hard work, integrity, generosity, and humility. He has left a rich legacy for his family to emulate.
Bob is survived by his wife and sweetheart, Joyce; six children: Scott (Lesli), Bobbi Green (Gerry), Jay (Anita), Ren (Sandi), Mitch (Shannon), and Jill VanderToolen (Stan); four siblings: Denece, Leonard, Chloe and Brent; 29 grandchildren and 13 great grandchildren.
The family wishes to express their sincere gratitude to the many dedicated health professionals at the Huntsman Cancer Institute and the University of Utah Medical Center who have treated Bob with great skill, compassion, and dignity throughout his illness. Special thanks to Steve Warner and Chase Peterson for their wisdom, guidance and caring during this time.
Funeral services will be held at 12 noon on Tuesday, September 4, 2007, at the Mount Olympus Stake Center, 3862 Oakview Drive in Salt Lake City. A viewing will be held at Wasatch Lawn Mortuary, 3401 Highland Drive, SLC, from 5-8 p.m. on Monday, September 3, and from 10:00-11:30 a.m. at the Mount Olympus Stake Center prior to the funeral on Tuesday.
The family suggests that donations be made to the Robert and Joyce Rice Charitable Giving Fund at the Huntsman Cancer Institute, established by Bob and Joyce to help fight this dreadful disease. Donations may be sent to the Huntsman Cancer Foundation at 500 Huntsman Way, Salt Lake City, Utah 84108 or on line at www.huntsmancancerfoundation.org