BONNELL GOODWIN RICE,

89, died peacefully in her sleep on January 24, 2020 at Stonebridge Village in Conway, Ark. She was born in Crossett on July 17, 1930. She attended Monticello High School where she participated on the basketball team and was a graduate of Arkansas A&M College with a degree in British Literature and Elementary Education. She received her Master’s Degree in Special Education in 1966 from State College of Arkansas in Conway.

She began her long teaching career in Fountain Hill (Ashley County), followed by positions in the school districts of Watson, Desha Central, Dumas, and Delta (all in Desha County). In 1976, she relocated to Little Rock where she continued to teach in the Little Rock School District until her retirement in 1998. She was a past president of the Pulaski County (Little Rock) Democratic Women and enjoyed volunteering for local and national Democratic candidates and was an avid Bridge player. She attended President Bill Clinton’s first inauguration in Washington, D.C.

She was preceded in death by her parents, Vasco and Lilamae Goodwin (Monticello); her ex-husband and children’s father, Raymond Dewitt Rice (Crossett); one brother, Van B. Goodwin (Russellville); and four sisters, Joanne Gibbs (Warren), Myrna Daniel (Monticello), Linda Pinkus (Dermott) and Sheila Young (Monticello). She is survived by one sister, Marcia Zeno (Bryant), and three children, Diane Rice Watt of Crossett, Michael Rice of New York City, and Rhonda Rice of Colorado Springs, Colo. She also is survived by five grandchildren and six great-grandchildren.

A private memorial reception will be held at a later date in Little Rock. After cremation, her remains will be interred at the St. James United Methodist Church in Little Rock where she was an active member. Memorials may be made to Arkansas Repertory Theatre, 601 Main Street, Little Rock, Ark., 72201.

Arrangements by Little Rock Funeral Home, (501) 224-2200. Mrs. Rice’s online guestbook may be signed at www.littlerockfuneralhome.com.