Ursinus Chaplain, Kimberton Waldorf Speaker Passes Away

COLLEGEVILLE, PA -- Reverend Charles Rice, the official Ursinus College Chaplain and an important member of the Kimberton Waldorf community, has passed away.

Rice earned his bachelor's degree from the United States Coast Guard Academy, before earning a Masters of Divinity from Crozer Theological Seminary, Ursinus said. He had been the Ursinus chaplain for 20 years.

Kimberton Waldorf released the following statement:

"Our students all knew and respected Charles – he was a huge part of the community: an inspiring speaker at many of our Martin Luther King, Jr. assemblies, Ethics class teacher to our high school students for several years, and an outreach admissions volunteer. Dr. Rice was an inspiration to all of us who had the good fortune to know him."

At Ursinus, Rice was described as a "fixture" in the philosophy and religious studies department, and recently led a group of students to Chicago as part of the African American Religious Experience course.

Due to Rice's passing, Kimberton Waldorf has rescheduled their upcoming gala from Saturday to Friday, May 5th, from 6:30 p.m. to 10:30 p.m. The event will be a celebration of Kimberton Waldorf School’s 75th Anniversary and of Rice's life, the school said, a portion of the proceeds from the event will be given to Rice's family.

Ursinus will hold a gathering at 5 p.m. on Wednesday in the Bomberger Meditation Chapel. The campus community was also invited to gather in Bomberger Auditorium at 1 p.m. for a supportive environment.

Patch file photo