Amanda Pevey
Elmore Autauga News
A familiar piece of Autauga County history rolled back into public view Saturday as W.C. Rice’s cross-covered red pickup truck appeared from nearly three decades of storage for a special community showcase.
The truck, covered in hand-painted crosses and religious messages, was displayed during an event at ACE Southern Lumber and Hardware, where residents gathered to remember the life and ministry of William Carlton “W.C.” Rice.
Hosted by Hot Rods & Hardware and presented by Rice’s son, Jerry Rice, and grandson, Earl Irvine, the event offered visitors a chance to reconnect with a man whose faith-inspired displays became a landmark for generations of travelers along Autauga County roads.
For many, Rice was more than the creator of the well-known Cross Garden. He was a businessman, mentor and devoted Christian whose message reached countless people who stopped by his property over the years.
“My granddaddy would start talking randomly about something that you needed to know and never judged you,” Irvine said. “All those years, he said God told him that He would save us, but he did not know what we would have to go through to get there.”
Irvine said it took him 27 years to embrace the faith his grandfather often spoke about.
“Before that, I did not do too very well in my life,” he said. “He owned a painting business, septic tank business, a dirt business and started a trailer park. He was a smart man with only having an eighth-grade education. He knew more stuff than you could realize, but he also worked so hard.”
Rice, a longtime house painter, became known throughout the area after what he described as a miraculous healing experience in 1960. The event transformed his life and inspired him to publicly share his faith through a growing collection of crosses and hand-painted messages.
Over time, those displays expanded into the Cross Garden along Autauga County Road 86, where rows of white wooden crosses stood alongside signs bearing warnings, scripture and messages about salvation. His home, roadside chapel and even his pickup truck reflected the same unmistakable expression of faith.
According to Jerry Rice, visitors began arriving from across the region to see the garden and speak with his father.
“My dad was a painter for 37 years,” Jerry Rice said. “People started coming out to see the crosses and the truck. He had a chapel out there where he lived.”
On Friday and Saturday nights, Rice often sat outside his chapel welcoming visitors who stopped by.
“Some of the teenagers that had come out were all messed up,” Jerry Rice said. “They did not know how life was going to be, and some of them did not want to live. They come back and still come back to this day. They wanted to know more about him and how much he changed their lives.”
While Rice’s displays sometimes drew mixed reactions, those closest to him remember a man who shared his beliefs without condemnation.
“One of the things I always remember about him was when people would come up and talk, he would never push Jesus on anybody,” Irvine said. “Even growing up as a kid and the stuff we went through, he never judged you or criticized you.”
Saturday’s event was intended not only to showcase the restored truck, but also to preserve the memory of a man whose ministry left a lasting impact on the community.
Irvine said he hopes the display marks the beginning of a larger effort to preserve Rice’s artifacts and story for future generations.
“I am looking forward to being able to get with the City of Prattville at some point and try to make an outdoor garden or an outdoor museum,” Irvine said. “I want to put all his things in one spot, so that way, for the next 100 years, people can look at it safely. That is my goal.”
For those who attended Saturday’s gathering, the truck served as more than a restored vehicle. It stood as a reminder of a uniquely local legacy, one rooted in faith, conversation, and a man many still remember decades later.
