In loving memory

Lauren R. Rice

August 13, 1981 — April 5, 2020

Lauren Rebecca Rice, 38, was born in Joliet, Il on August 13, 1981, and died on April 5, 2020. Raised on the southeast side of Des Moines, she attended Lakewood Elementary, Weeks Middle, and Christ the King schools before attending East High School, where she was an award-winning member of the debate team, and Central Academy. After graduating in 1999, Lauren attended the University of Iowa, receiving honors degrees in English and women’s studies in 2003, and the University of New Orleans, receiving an MFA in nonfiction from the Creative Writing Workshop in 2006.  

For the past 10 years, Lauren served as a professor of English at DMACC, where she taught a variety of classes in composition and literature. Among her accomplishments at DMACC was her multi-year involvement with the school’s study abroad program in London, which united her love of language and learning, her passion for travel and exploration, and her dedication to creating opportunities for students of all backgrounds.

Lauren’s gift for language and writing was expressed in her work for Mother Jones magazine, her book Iowa: An Explorer’s Guide, her published poetry and – as anyone who knew her would attest – her wild, sharp, boundless sense of humor. A devoted daughter, sister, aunt, and friend to many, Lauren loved hearing and telling great stories, having crazy ideas and running with them, being the first and last one on every dance floor, ruling the karaoke stage, and conquering new RAGBRAI routes (as the founding member of Team Beaver).  Her most recent passion was sailing, including the 2019 Trans-Superior Race. She loved walking and playing with her dog, Holiday. 

Most of all, Lauren loved smiling, laughing, and sharing time with the wide and beloved family she built for herself over the years. Lauren is survived by her mother, Debra Thelen, and stepfather Dale Thelen; her father, Jerry Rice and stepmother Sheri; her siblings Emily, Justin and Katie Rice, Kenny (Nicole) Thelen, and Kim (Cliff) Hanysh; her nieces and nephews Addison, Kayla, and Klayden Thelen, Charlotte, Holden and Frankie Rice, Brian McDermott, and Alexander and Andrew Butterfield; and countless extended family and dear friends from Des Moines’ east side, Beaverdale, Iowa City, New Orleans, San Francisco, and all the other places Lauren journeyed in her life. She was preceded in death by her grandparents Virginia and Robert Thuot, Esther and Oscar Rice, and Gerald Thelen.   

In March 2020, in the middle of a global crisis, Lauren helped her students return home safely from their studies overseas before going into quarantine to keep herself and others safe and well. Even then, she used her skills at distance education to assist other teachers and students, while reaching out to family and friends to share jokes, connect through group texts and video calls, and check in. Lauren lived for generosity, hospitality,  adventures, embracing every moment of the day to the fullest - and most of all, joy. Everyone whose lives she enriched with her light will remember her joy.