Marilyn “Rita” S. Rice, 72, of Wilton died Friday, May 1, 2015, at the Serenity House in Tomah.
She was born Aug. 27, 1942, in Evergreen Park, Ill., to CJ and Martha (Gentry) Neal. Rita was united in marriage to Gary Stokely and later to Harry W. Wilson; they preceded her in death. On July 1, 1978, Rita was united in marriage to William Rice at St. John the Baptist Catholic Church in Wilton. Together Rita and Bill owned and operated the Whispering Pines Bed and Breakfast on the Rice farm for many years. She also worked at the Hillsboro Co-op as a cashier in 2007.
Rita and Bill relocated to Tomah in August 2012. She was a faithful and devoted member of St. John the Baptist Catholic Church. She had a fiery and comical personality and dearly loved to laugh. In her spare time, Rita loved to travel, especially taking road trips to different states and eating out with Bill. She also was an avid bowler, belonging to various league teams. She will always be remembered for her love of red salvias and white petunias, showing Belgian horses, sitting on the front porch watching the hummingbirds at the feeders, and enjoying the farmhouse valley.
She is survived by her husband, William “Bill” of Tomah; two children, Jodie (Jim) Miller of Wilton and Gary (Heather) Stokely of La Crescent, Minn.; six stepchildren, Mark (Gayle) Rice of Holland, Mich., Cheryl (Steven) Fry of Reedsburg, Barbara (Gene) Bloom of Tomah, Patrick Rice of Tomah, Joyce (Duane) Dritline of Chicago and William (Sandy) Rice Jr. of Oregon, Ill.; 23 grandchildren; 32 great-grandchildren; a brother, Robert (Bonnie) Neal of Springfield, Mo.; two sisters, Golda Mooi of St. Lake City, Utah, and Robin Kennedy of Marian, Ill.; and nieces, nephews, other relatives and friends.
She was preceded in death by her parents; a sister, Lynn Neal; her first husband, Gary Stokely Sr.; her second husband, Harry W. Wilson; two brothers-in-law; and a sister-in-law.
A Funeral Mass of Christian Burial will be at 11 a.m. Tuesday, May 5, at St. John the Baptist Church, 504 Enderby, Wilton. Father Traynor will officiate. Burial will be in Oak Grove Cemetery. Relatives and friends are invited to call at the church on Tuesday from 10 a.m. until the time of the service. Online condolences are available at www.sonnenburgfamilyfh.com.
