H. Hamilton ‘Chip’ Rice Jr.
H. Hamilton “Chip” Rice Jr. of Holmes Beach died June 11.
He served as Manatee County attorney 1983-1997 and practiced law in the private sector in Manatee County until his retirement in 2013.
Born in Kentucky, anyone who knew Mr. Rice referred to him as a “true Kentucky gentleman.” He was a graduate of the University Kentucky and earned his law degree from the University of Kentucky College of Law in 1963. He was a life member of the University of Kentucky National Alumni Association. His legal areas of expertise included local government, administrative law and general litigation. He was admitted to practice before the U.S. Supreme Court, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit, the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Kentucky, the Middle District of Florida and the Supreme Courts of Florida and Kentucky.
Mr. Rice shared his time, talent and wisdom through his involvement with many nonprofits, including at Christ Episcopal Church, Episcopal Diocese of Southwest Florida, University of South Florida at Sarasota/Manatee; Manatee County Coalition on Homelessness, Masonic Lodge, Manatee Chamber of Commerce and Kiwanis Club of Bradenton.
Additionally, he served in the U.S. Army as a captain 1957-1961.
Chip Rice was the recipient of the Florida Bar Ralph A. Marsicano Award, the Florida Bar Paul S. Buchman Award, the Manatee County Bar Association 2007 William C. Grimes Award for Lifetime Achievement in Community Service, the Florida Association of County Attorneys President’s Award, the Florida Association of County Attorneys Local Government Law Award, the Florida Super Lawyers awards and the Manatee County Volunteer Service Award.
Condolences may be shared at www.blountcurrycarrollwood.com.
Mr. Rice is survived by wife Lester; son H. Hamilton III and wife Kim; daughter Margaret Rice Owen; step-son Phil Bartles Jr.; step-daughter Sarah Kathryn Bartles; son-in-law Bret DeBenedictis; and grandchildren Brent Haire, Taylor Ravenna, Lindsay Rice, Trace and Ronan DeBenedictis.
Jose Baserva
Jose Baserva, 57, of Bradenton, died June 19.
Mr. Baserva was the owner of Jose’s Real Cuban Food, 8799 Cortez Road, Bradenton, from 2007 until the restaurant closed in May.
The restaurant and Mr. Baserva were featured on a 2011 episode of Guy Fieri’s “Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives” on the Food Network.
Mr. Baserva was born in Cuba and raised in Miami.
Covell Funeral Home and Cremation Services, 4232 26th St. W., Bradenton, is in charge of arrangements. A viewing will be 6:30-8:30 p.m. Wednesday, June 24. Services will be at the Bridge Church at Palma Sola Bay, 4000 75th St. W., Bradenton 6:30 p.m. Thursday, June 25. Memorial donations may be made to The Bridge Church.
He is survived by wife Darlene.
Linda Diane VanDeBoe Kelly
Linda Diane VanDeBoe Kelly of Holmes Beach died June 19.
She was born June 14, 1941, in Los Angeles, to Charles and Mary VanDeBoe. Shortly after, the family moved to Tampa and remained there throughout her childhood.
While attending Hillsborough High School, she met Robert Kelly and they married Feb. 21, 1958.
They lived in Longview, Texas; Atlanta and Tampa before retiring to Anna Maria Island in 1998. Mrs. Kelly loved her island life.
She pursued many interests and was a pastel artist, an amateur botanist and outstanding cook. She was a voracious reader, played tennis and bridge, enjoyed mahjong, was a skillful seamstress and was the perfect, albeit reluctant, first mate to Capt. Bob aboard their trawler, Linda II.
Memorial donations may be made to PanCan.org.
Arrangements were by Griffith-Cline Funeral Home.
She is survived by husband Bob; children Vicki Kelly Butler of Crystal River, Kim Johnson and husband Dan, and Bobby and wife Ruth, all of Bradenton; grandchildren Jimmy and wife Leslie, Samantha Butler, Patrick Johnson and wife Katya, Mary Caitlin Lazzara and husband Timmy, Kelly Johnson, Caroline and Kathleen; siblings Gertrude Porto, Bucky VanDeBoe and Frank VanDeBoe; and several nieces and nephews, including Amanda Porto Klodokis of Tampa.
Nancy Lee Willeson
Nancy Lee Willeson, 87, of Palm Harbor and formerly Anna Maria Island and Bradenton, died April 18.
She was born Jan. 20, 1928, in Wellesley Hills, Massachusetts, to Roger Earle and Gladys Carr Morse. She graduated from the Williston Northampton School in Easthampton, Massachusetts and she also graduated from Principia College in Elsah, Illinois.
She married Ronald Maxwell-Willeson Sept. 6, 1952, and raised four children in Wayland, Massachusetts, and later in Chatham, Massachusetts.
She loved riding horses. She was an avid reader and loved playing bridge and almost any card game.
She is survived by brother Malcolm Carr Morse and sister-in-law Alice Zollner Morse; children Robin Garfield of Detriot, Holly Abbate of Chatham, Becky Garlicki of Brimfield, Massachusetts, and Alec Maxwell of Oldsmar; 12 grandchildren; and two great grand-children.