The Reverend Joel P. Rice of Brazos Presbytery, Texas Synod, Cumberland Presbyterian Church in America, died August 10, 2022. A past General Assembly Moderator, he was a longtime pastor in the Cumberland Presbyterian Church in America and made history as the man to break the color barrier at Bethel College (now University) in McKenzie, Tennessee.

Not without controversy but without the rancor which so often accompanied the desegregation of institutions in the American south, Joel entered Bethel College in 1961. The Reverend Dr. Walter Butler, president of Bethel University, commented, “Bethel University has lost an earthly friend today to a much greater reward. In 1961, Reverend Joel Rice joined our family and became the first African American to attend Bethel. Thankfully, the doors he opened in 1961 changed Bethel’s legacy to one we can all be proud of. We are forever grateful for his decision to attend Bethel University and are grateful for his role in making Bethel University the University it is today. He has touched so many lives in his life and left us an example of a life we should all strive to model after. We cherish Reverend Rice’s legacy and our prayers, today, go out on behalf of his family and many friends.”

On several occasions, Joel returned to Bethel. He spoke at numerous functions and, on November 10, 1990, served as grad marshal of the Bethel College homecoming parade.

Joel’s son, the Reverend Dr. Perryn Rice, serves Lake Highlands Presbyterian Church (Red River Presbytery CPC/Grace Presbytery PCUSA) in Dallas, Texas.

The article is woefully incomplete. More information will be added as it becomes available.