Rice, Charles
RICE, Sr., Charles Barton
Charles Barton Rice, Sr. was a native son of Early County, Georgia. He was a successful entrepreneur, lifelong adventurer and generous philanthropist. He died just two days after his 87th birthday, on November 27, 2023.
Born in Blakely, GA, Charles was the son of Jean Barton Rice (Mr. J.B.) and Kathryn Patrick Rice (Katha) who settled in the area in the 1930s. He was the oldest sibling of James Rice and Kathy Proulx and graduated from Blakely Union High School in 1955. Charles was known for his great love of adventure and freedom, initially attributed to the "bullet car" his father crafted from a B29 fuel tank during his childhood. He traced his work ethic and entrepreneurial spirit to his father who worked tirelessly at his garage and many other businesses he created to make ends meet and help support other branches of the family during the depression.
Charles studied at North Georgia Military College and Georgia Tech before serving in the U.S. Army Reserve. He later went on to earn a BA at Georgia State University. In 1979, Charles married Catherine Boylen, and together raised their children, Barton and Kimberly Rickey in Norcross, GA.
In November 1977, Rice founded Barton Protective Services (BPS) with the company motto, "Win the customer for life." Over 27 years, he developed it into the second largest, privately-held, contract security service firm in the United States with more than $300 million in annual sales. The company provided customers with protection against fire, burglary and a host of other services by providing security officers as well as emergency response, intellectual asset protection, concierge and workplace violence prevention services to clients in the US and Europe. In 1983, BPS opened an office in Charlotte, NC, its first branch outside of Georgia. In 1996, BPS partnered with Sun Microsystems to expand into Silicon Valley, California. In 1998, they expanded internationally and provided security service to Sun Microsystems in the UK and Netherlands. BPS employed 13,000 people and in 2000 was named by Fortune Magazine as one of the Best 100 Companies to Work For, for 5 consecutive years. In 2001, Charles was honored as Ernst and Young Entrepreneur of the Year in the business service category. In 2004, Allied Security purchased BPS and combined the two companies.
Later that year, Charles established the Charles and Catherine B. Rice Foundation. In 2006, the Foundation funded the Early County 2055 Revitalization Initiative (EC2055) to help the area grow and prosper through new economic opportunities. His son, Barton Rice, led the initiative, which has continued to have a positive impact in the area to this day.
His adventurous spirit led Charles to be a lifetime collector of cars and motorcycles. He had his pilot's license for many years and was elated to secure a ticket to travel into outer space with Virgin Galactic. He was an accomplished golfer, who played regularly and traveled to many golf courses worldwide, including St. Andrews, The Masters and others. He was an avid traveler, including trips to the jungles of Panama, the Paris Air Show and the northern tip of Alaska. His dream was to one day travel to the final frontier.
His generous philanthropy extended far and wide to churches, universities, scholarships, museums, nonprofits and so much more.
Charles is survived by his loving wife of 44 years, Catherine Boylen Rice of Johns Creek, GA; son, Charles Barton Rice Jr. (Andrea Lauer Rice) of Roswell, GA; daughter, Kimberly Rickey Lucas (Bert Lucas) of Hiawassee, GA; and beloved grandchildren: Stephen Braxton Wall of Valley Head, AL; London Wall Ayers (Caleb Ayers) of Jamestown, NC; Nicholas Barton Rice and John Patrick Rice of Roswell, GA; and Fallon, Jameson, Taryn and Chase Kaufman of Brookhaven, GA; Lee Ann Lucas, Hiawassee, GA.
His service will be held on Sunday, December 17, 2023, at Crowell Brothers Funeral Home in Peachtree Corners, GA from 1:00 - 3:00 PM. In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations be made to the Charles and Catherine B. Rice Scholarship, Gerontology Institute, Georgia State University (https://giving.gsu.edu/explore/) or City of Refuge (https://www.cityofrefugeatl.org/).
View the obituary on Legacy.com
Funeral Home Information
Crowell Brothers Funeral Homes & Crematory
5051 Peachtree Industrial Boulevard
Peachtree Corners, GA
30092
