Lonnie Rayburn Rice, 88

Duffield & Pastrick Family Funeral Home
In memoriam of Lonnie R. Rice, 04/29/1925 - 01/30/2014
View the online memorial here.
Lonnie Rayburn Rice, 88, went to be with the Lord on Thursday, Jan. 30, 2014 at Hospice House.
Funeral services with Military Rites following will be held at 1 p.m. Tuesday at Duffield & Pastrick Family Funeral Home in Coloma. Burial will follow at Coloma Cemetery. Visitation will be held from 6-8 p.m. Monday.
Those wishing to leave a message for the family online may do so by selecting the "Sign the Guestbook" link below.
Memorials may be made to the Hanson Hospice Center or Wounded Warriors.
Lonnie was born April 29, 1925 in Harrisburg, AR to Charlie and Mabel Rice. He was a farmer prior to joining the U.S. Army where he served in the machine gun squad of the Eighth (Golden Arrow) Infantry Division in Germany during WWII. His division crossed the Roer River where they attacked the Germans and pushed their way forward to the Rhine in a series of night attacks.
After the war he worked as a mechanic and a logger. He met and later married Jo Ann Byrd on Jan. 4, 1953. The couple moved to Michigan where Lonnie worked as a welder at Clark Equipment Co. for over 27 years. He was an avid hunter who was often accompanied by his best friend of many years, Bill Rose of Fairplain.
He is survived by two daughters; Judy Ann (Dan) Wilson and Velda (Ed) Lenz, both of Coloma; his son Charlie (Patti) Rice of Benton Harbor; his brother Melvin (Doris) Rice of Greenfield, AR; five grandchildren, Laura (Felix) Reyna of Paw Paw, Carrie Wilson of Colorado Springs, CO, Sarah (Kurt) Fleming of Dowagiac, Jacob Lenz of Coloma, and Aaron Rice of Benton Harbor; his great granddaughter Madison Fleming; and several nieces and nephews.
He was preceded by his wife Jo Ann on Aug. 27, 1989, his parents, and a brother Robert Rice.

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