Sidney Darrell Rich

Sid was born on August 23, 1936, the only child of Sidney E. and Effie Irene Gage Rich, and was a proud fourth generation resident of Austin, Texas. He was a product of the Austin Public Schools and the University of Texas. As a young man, he was active in sports; horseback riding, swimming, baseball, softball and basketball. He was a proud member of the Boy Scouts of America, achieving the rank of Star Scout. When his son Steve became a scout he served as a leader and was inducted into the Order of the Arrow, the National Honor Society of Scouting.

Sid inherited a talent for art from his mother, a professional artist and teacher and at 10 years old, first exhibited his work at the Texas Fine Arts Association’s fall exhibit at Laguna Gloria. “I always made A+ in art. It was my best subject next to gym class,” he would say. Sid and his mother would often exhibit their work at the same shows, and were proud of the fact that they were usually the only mother son exhibitors. As an adult artist, many of his creations were sold to individuals and businesses.

In the 1950s the Austin Parks and Recreation Department sponsored athletic competitions between the various parks. Sid played baseball for Shipe Park and was on their swimming team, competing in diving and always winning the “Blue Ribbon” for the breast stroke, which he swam underwater.

He played organized football and was on the first team that Baker Junior High and McCallum High School ever had. At age 19 he began lifting weights with his best friend, Ronny Woodmansee, and in three years Side had bulked up from 175 to 225, able to bench press 550 pounds. At age 78 he was still able to do repetitions at 225 pounds on the bench press, astonishing the younger men in the weight room at the Jewish Community Center. He continued to exercise the rest of his life and always prided himself in keeping fit.

He played church softball into his forties and loved to snow ski, and play tennis, especially with his son Steve. Sid was also an avid hunter of doves and deer. He was particularly fond of University of Texas athletics, especially Longhorn football, where he was for years a Longhorn Foundation member and season ticket holder. Sid was also an avid fan of the Dallas Cowboys, the Texas Rangers, and the San Antonio Spurs.

From 1953 until his honorable discharge in 1961, he was a non-commissioned officer in the 149th Military Police Company, 49th Armored Division. A Sharpshooter with all weapons he was Expert with the Colt 45 pistol and was a member of the 49th Armored Division pistol team. He played third base on the company baseball team.

In 1957, Sid married Marlene Rose Clyburn, a popular high school beauty and the absolute love of his life, who was also a fourth generation resident of Austin. While on their honeymoon in Mexico they survived the 7.6 magnitude Guerrero earthquake. Mexico City, where they were staying, and Chilpancingo, were badly affected. Some 160 people died. “We were 20 and 18 years old,” Sid explained, “and took everything in stride.

So the next day we continued our activities which included the canals at Xochimilco, the Aztec pyramids and a bull fight at Plaza Mexico that Sunday afternoon.”

Sid and Marlene had one son, Steve, born in 1961.

In the early 60s he was a proud member, director and officer in the Austin Jaycees. He credits this experience as one that taught him to debate, and to motivate and lead others. "We also enjoyed the social aspects of membership. Marlene and I made friends that we kept for a lifetime."

In the late 1980s he was a member of the Board of Directors of YMCA of Austin were he exercised and was a staunch supporter and fundraiser. Also in the 80s he was a member of a sail boat crew and was responsible for the spinnaker. According to Sid, “We raced in regattas around central Texas. When your boat is trimmed out and cutting through the water it’s pretty exciting. I enjoyed the experience.”

Sid also loved music, had a nice baritone voice, and proudly sang in the choir at two different churches. He was part of a select group of choir members from Hyde Park Baptist Church who sang a Christmas concert at the White House.

He had a love affair with the movies for as long as he could remember and particularly enjoyed the ones for the 1940s. His film library contains over 400 movies which he methodically numbered, indexed and cataloged. "Whatever mood Marlene and I were in, we had the movie for it." It became a tradition to watch all the Christmas movies in their video library during the month of December.

Sid became a certified scuba diver swimming at depths as much as 100 feet. His dives were in some interesting places such as Mexico, Bermuda, the Bahamas, St. Croix and Hawaii. "It's another world down there. I swam with sharks, barracuda, manta rays, and once petted a moray eel. I enjoyed diving immensely, particularity when it was with my son, Steve. It was a real rush."

Rich was an insurance executive before joining the Texas Nursing Home Association in 1965. Starting with a small staff, a modest budget and a membership of less than 20% of the licensed facilities, the organization grew into a powerful trade group, a multi-million dollar operation experiencing twenty years of continuous growth and reaching over 85% of the licensed nursing home facilities in Texas. He started the first continuing education program for administrators and staff in the nation and authored the legislation that required nursing home administrators to be licensed. When the legislature eliminated Medicaid funded custodial care in nursing homes Sid came up with the concept of Assisted Living. A legislative backed study committee was appointed. They conducted statewide town hall meetings to get input from families. The legislation was then written and passed by the Texas Legislature, followed by the rules and regulations to implement the new law. As we say, “The rest is history.” As TNHA President and Chief Operating Officer, he was very active in negotiating with state and federal agencies, and in lobbying Congress and the Texas Legislature. He was the proud recipient of the Better Life Award, the highest honor bestowed by the proprietary nursing home industry and was selected a Fellow in the American College of Health Care Administrators. In 1985, after twenty years with the nursing home industry, he left to become President of Granny and Gramps, a firm engaged in the development and operation of assisted living facilities.

While on a business trip to Abilene, Texas for the Association, Sid was mistaken for the screen actor Doug McClure. He graciously signed autographs for all the girls working at the hotel registration desk and the business office.

In 1989, Sid founded Dar-rell Enterprises, a firm specializing in consulting work with long-term health care providers, lobbying for special clients and association management. He was, for a time, Chairman-of-the–Board of the Autumn Hills Corporation, which owned and operated a number of nursing homes and assisted living homes in the gulf coast area of Texas. He was involved in the founding of two other trade groups; the Texas Risk Retention Association and the Texas Association of Residential Care Communities. In his career he was directly or indirectly involved with the development and implementation of most of the long-term care programs in Texas and was a force behind many revolutionary concepts and initiatives.

In the late 90s he was first elected to the Board of the Westover Villas Homeowners Association and over a 26 year period he served as President twice, Treasurer twice and Secretary, serving on the Board of the Association for a total of ten years.

Sid Rich was a warrior, a man that brought passion to living and energy and intensity to everything he did. He was not opinionated, but he always had an opinion. One could have said of him, "He might not always be right, but he’s never in doubt."

Sid loved to visit new and interesting places and he and Marlene were privileged to have traveled extensively throughout the United States, the Caribbean, the US Virgin Islands, the Hawaiian Islands, Bermuda, and Europe. "We enjoyed them all but Italy was definitely our favorite country," he commented. “It’s pretty amazing to have been in some of the major cities in the world and in countries like Canada, Egypt, England, France, Germany, Greece, Italy, Mexico, Scotland, Sicily, Switzerland, Turkey and Wales. It’s been quite a run.”

Sid said, “In my lifetime I have been privileged to meet many important people in government, sports, media, and the military: from Werner Von Braun to President Lyndon Johnson, President Gerald Ford, President Jimmy Carter, President George W. Bush, US House Speaker Jim Wright, J. Edgar Hoover, Red Skelton, Kurt Jurgens, Buddy Hackett, Count Basie, Sonny Liston, Sean Connery, Charles Kuralt, Ted Koppel, George Wallace, Art Linkletter, David Brinkley, Dan Rather, Donald O’Conner and General Jimmy Doolittle, to mention a few. But to meet and know Jesus Christ changed and directed my life and guaranteed my place in eternity. I recommend you get the know Him.”

He came to know the Lord Jesus Christ as his savior at a young age. He and Marlene were active in Kinney Avenue Baptist Church for twenty years. He was ordained as a deacon at the age of 24-years and was chairman of two Pulpit Committees who brought new ministers to the church. As chairman of the KABC missions committee he and Marlene, along with Boyd and Wynona Box, were instrumental in starting a mission in Westlake Hills. The effort resulted in the building of a Baptist church in the community. He was active in his church, serving on all the major committees and was a department director and teacher. He did some lay preaching, taught Sunday school in two nursing homes for a decade and taught every age group in the church. Later on the family joined Hyde Park Baptist Church, located in the neighborhood where Sid had originally lived and grown up. At Hyde Park he was involved in visitation and served as a choir member, usher, Sunday school department director and teacher, and decision counselor.

He began volunteering at the Hyde Park Food Pantry in 2009 and took over as its Director in 2018 serving a total of 14 years. He said, “The pantry was a real calling from God and I enjoyed every minute of it. I also was able to lead one of our homeless clients to Christ. It is a great ministry. All in all, it was a quite satisfying experience,”

He also became involved in the Hyde Park prayer ministry in 2009. "One of the most meaningful areas of Christian service was when I became involved in the intercessory prayer ministry. To take responsibility for someone else and lift them up to God is a great and wonderful thing. God responds to the prayers of his people and I saw the miracles of God's grace and love on a regular basis. I witnessed the joy of answered prayer in my own life and the lives of others. It substantially reinforced my own faith," Sid confessed.

After 41 years at Hyde Park Baptist Church he and Marlene joined Austin Baptist Church (ABC) in 2022. That same year Sid was approved by the church and added to the list of active Deacons. Sid was active and served as an usher and in several Deacon Ministries.

In 2001, at the age of 64-years, AmErica House, with offices in Baltimore, Maryland published his first book,, Standing on the Promises, written in obedience to the leadership of God. He wrote fiction and non-fiction, about love and war, but most of his titles were historical fiction. The first 15 of his books were available from Barnes & Noble and Amazon. When AmErica House closed its doors he self-published the final 5 books. “My favorite book was titled Rachel,” Sid explained. “It all started in Berlin in 1932. It’s about a Jewish girl, a gentile boy, and a world at war. I followed that with a sequel entitled A Time for Retribution.”

About the time he started writing; he also developed a real interest in cooking and became quite accomplished at it. “In the same way as painting and writing, I enjoyed the creative aspects of cooking a beautiful looking and tasting meal. I didn’t do toilets or windows but if it was in the kitchen I was all in.”

In 2006 he was diagnosed with prostate cancer. The cancerous prostate was removed and he experienced a complete cancer free recovery. Sid remarked, "With so many friends and family praying for me, I received the perfect outcome I expected. God is good and faithful and answers the prayers of his people."

In 2014 Sid and Marlene were appointed members of the Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary’s Advisory Council. “We received updates and status reports on all seminary activities and are invited to make recommendations. We interacted with school officials, deans and professors and were invited to visit and observe classes and provide feedback. We educated our local churches, recruited new members and students, and helped raise funds to sustain the school. We were eligible to attend trustee meetings. Marlene and I love the Seminary and were grateful for the opportunity to serve that great institution for seven years.”

Sid worked full time until his retirement at age 82 at the end of 2018 after 52 years as a well-respected businessman and registered Texas lobbyist. “I worked in Texas and with the Congress. I walked away knowing that some of the things I did changed lives, for the better, of many elderly patients, residents, and families.”

As a born again Christian, Sid gave God the credit for all his talents and good fortune. He loved the Lord and was a great believer in the power of prayer, the subject of his first book, Standing on the Promises.

Sid told of four distinct encounters with God; two times when God gave him clear and life changing answers to prayer. The third and fourth time was a message from God. As Sid explained, "When it happens to you, it kicks you up to another spiritual level. And when you hear others speak of the same kind of encounter, you recognize it. You know exactly what they are talking about. You've been there."

On August 24, 2020 he had the priviledge of baptizing his daughter-in-law, Donetta, in Lake LBJ. “How many of us have the joy of baptizing someone in our own family. That’s a memory I shall never forget.”

Sid Rich lived a happy and successful life and was able to exist quite nicely without ever being on Facebook or Twitter. He begrudgingly got a smart phone at the tender age of 86 at the behest of his family.

He is survived by Marlene, the love of his life, and wife of 68 years, his son Steve Rich and his wife Donetta of Austin, as well as honorary grandchildren Lauren and Taylor Schmidt. He was preceded in death by his father Sidney E. Rich and his mother Effie Irene Rich, as well as his grandparents, and many aunts, uncles and cousins and friends.

“I have prayed in the Sistine Chapel, visited the Roman Coliseum, been down in the Great Pyramid in Giza, and gazed at the Eiffel Tower and the Leaning Tower of Pisa. I have visited the beaches at Normandy and stood at the base of the Parthenon. I have known and met celebrities, important government officials, world class athletes, astronauts, Governors, Congressman, Senators and Presidents—but the very best of all was meeting JESUS. John 10:27 says, My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me. I have heard the voice of God and I have claimed his promises. I am in heaven, living the greatest adventure of all. So you see, for people like me, it's not goodbye but see you later. I hope to see you."

Arrangements are under the direction of Weed Corley Fish Funeral Home. Burial will be at Austin Memorial Park in a private ceremony.

A memorial service to celebrate the life of Sid Rich, will be held at 12:00pm on December 4th, 2025 at Austin Baptist Church; Pastor Jonathon Spencer presiding. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to Hyde Park Baptist Foundation, Marlene Rich Scholarship Fund.

Luke 12:32 Fear not little flock, for it is your Father's good pleasure to give you the Kingdom.