Obituary of Bruce A. Rice
Bruce A. Rice, 57, of Pittsford, NY, died unexpectedly on Friday, August 3, 2018. He was born to the late William (Bill) and Elisabeth (Betty) Rice of Amherst, MA in 1961. Bruce had a deep interest in Native American cultures, and was passionate about horseback riding, taking lessons for many years as a child at a local stable. He attended the Amherst-Pelham Regional Schools through high school. He participated in track, cross-country, and swimming, earning many varsity letters. He then attended the University of Massachusetts, Amherst.
Bruce was an avid musician and vocalist, playing violin in the junior high school orchestra and performing duets with his father. He was honored to get the lead of Nathan Detroit in his high school musical, Guys and Dolls. His passion for playing classical, acoustic and electric guitar began in high school and continued throughout his entire life. Most recently, he specialized in bossa nova-style jazz, participating in three local bands: The Remnants, 7 Below and Shahin Swings Big Band.
Bruce moved to the Rochester, NY area in the 1980’s. In 1989 he met Cathy through a mutual friend while rock climbing; they married in 1994. In addition to rock climbing, Bruce and Cathy had many adventures backpacking, cycling, xc skiing, downhill skiing, snowshoeing, ice climbing and summiting mountains, many in the Adirondack High Peaks. Highlights were climbing Half Dome in Yosemite National Park, and Mt. Katahdin in Baxter State Park in Maine. Recently, he backpacked with brother Norm and nephew Adam in the Sierra Nevada mountain range. He and Cathy were avid birdwatchers and gardeners, creating new landscapes at both of their homes.
Bruce held many positions in his career beginning with Direct Marketing Coordinator at Rochester Community Savings Bank in 1995. From there, he went on to Concentrix as Account Manager, Catalyst Direct as Senior Account Executive, Global Crossing as Worldwide Marcom Manager, then moved to Frontier as Channel Marketing Manager/Marcom Manager. In 2005 he was hired as Marketing Manager at Choice One Communications, moving on to Dixon Schwabl Advertising as Vice President of Client Services, then the SKM Group in Buffalo, NY as Director of Direct Marketing. He was most recently at Excellus BCBS as Medicare Marcom Manager.
Bruce is survived by his loving wife, Catherine Senecal-Rice. He is also survived by three older brothers: Thomas (Kathleen) of Chicopee, MA, Norman (Sue) of Andover, MA, and Richard (Diana) of Rochester, NH. He is also survived by seven nieces and nephews and a great-nephew and two great-nieces. Predeceased by parents William and Elisabeth. Beloved sister, Margaret (Peter Frewen) predeceased him 18 years ago. A private celebration of Bruce’s life was recently held. Contributions in his name may be directed to the Eastman Community Music School to support a jazz guitar scholarship c/o Eastman School of Music, Office of Advancement, 26 Gibbs St, Rochester, NY 14604.
