Rick Mcknight

Rick McKnight brought joy to every room he entered. His enthusiasm was palpable whether he was playing the organ at St. Thomas Episcopal Church, creating an arts project at a school, sharing a meal with friends and family, spending time with his grandchildren or fitting a toddler for his first pair of shoes.

With the exception of college, Rick lived his whole life in Columbus and he believed he could make it better for all of us by stepping up and giving his gifts to the community. “Servant Leader” is a term that’s used a lot, but it truly describes Rick McKnight. He held leadership roles in so many organizations including the Medical Center Hospital Authority, Voices of the Valley, Historic Columbus Board of Trustees, River Center for the Performing Arts Project Development Team and member of the Founding Board of Trustees which conceived and built the River Center; Home for Good—the City of Columbus’ Ten-Year Plan to End Homelessness, Bibb Village Neighborhood Association, ArtBeat, St. Thomas Episcopal Church, Columbus Cultural Arts Alliance, ArtsReachColumbus Symphony Orchestra, the American Guild of Organists—Columbus GA Chapter, Co-Chair (with wife Marquette) of the Children’s Miracle Network and the American Cancer Society Crystal Ball, Columbus Rotary, the Youth Orchestra of Columbus, Greater Columbus GA Chamber of Commerce Board, Uptown Columbus Board, Leadership Columbus and Leadership Georgia, the Columbus Consolidated Government Planning Advisory Commission and was the initiator and site coordinator for the Kennedy Center’s Any Given Child program, a collaboration between the city, public schools and arts organizations.

Rick’s love of the community and his work for various associations was recognized with many awards from a myriad of organizations including being the Honoree at the American Cancer Society’s 2018 Crystal Ball; the Columbus State University 2024  Lifetime Achievement Award by the Dance Advisory Board, and the prestigious Governor’s Award for Arts and Humanities.

A strong proponent of education, Rick was an alumnus of Hardaway High School, Auburn University, the Fashion Institute of Technology and The Julliard School, both in New York City.He came back home to Columbus and put what he learned to use in business and music. He was constantly reinventing himself. Professionally, he founded the high-end women’s clothing store McKay’s, where he became fast friends with every woman in Columbus who loved clothes. As the first non-family owner of the Kiddie Shoppe – he fit shoes on half the kids in the region and made thousands of life-long family friends. After his retail career, Rick was the Community Support Officer/Arts Education at River Center for the Performing Arts where he further expanded his passion about arts education and community support of the arts. Simultaneously, he enhanced his own professional musicianship becoming the Organist-Choirmaster at St. Thomas Episcopal Church where he grew the choral and music program to unprecedented levels of participation, support and quality. He led choir fundraising efforts to renovate the nursery wing and to renovate and expand the pipe organ and helped support every capital campaign St. T ever had.  He organized fundraising and coordinated trips for the choir to sing at St. Philip’s Cathedral, Atlanta; Washington National Cathedral; Choir Residencies at Wells, Gloucester and Norwich Cathedrals, England; the Cathedral Church of St. John the Divine, New York and a Choir Residency at St. Patrick Cathedral, Dublin, Ireland.He developed multiple advantageous collaborations with local organizations and non-profits, as well as musical collaborations with other churches.

Rick’s most passionate project came later in life with the founding of FABArts—named so because “Fab” was the name his grandchildren called him and “Arts” because that’s what this non-profit is all about. Rick saw a need for more integrated arts education for our children and set about making a way to deliver this, especially to those students with the least resources to access the arts on their own.

In the few short years since FABArts was founded in 2021, he brought artists from around the country to area schools showing educators how to use the arts to teach curriculum using everything from music to puppetry, from story writing and telling to juggling, from poetry to visual arts. Ever the tireless fundraiser, he made this happen with grants and donations impacting the lives of thousands of children at no cost to their families. Students and teachers delighted in the days that Fab was coming to their school for fun that was also a learning experience—though most thought it was just fun. His legacy will live on in the hearts and minds of those children and teachers.

Rick loved people and he embraced everyone. It was not uncommon to hear from Rick with a call, text, email or handwritten note with congratulations, sympathy, attaboy, (or girl!), thinking of you or I love you. He was a thoughtful communicator who wanted people to know that he noticed them and what was going on in their lives and he acknowledged it. Since his death, so many people have noted that they thought “I was Rick’s favorite person, when in fact; he made everyone feel like they were the favorite!”

Rick’s family was his pride and joy and he used the term “family” in the broadest sense. Despite a large biological family, he embraced a huge cadre of people from all walks of life and if Rick McKnight loved you, you knew it. He was generous with his hugs and I love yous, and most especially his St. Thomas choir family, where he and Marquette claimed dozens of choir kids and seniors that were old enough to be their parents. Rick had a wild passion for church and classical music but it was his faith that was a beauty to behold as he ministered daily to his choir family. They will miss him, but they know they were loved deeply.

The light of his world was his wife Marquette. For 34 years, they shared a magical life traveling around the globe soaking in the experiences that you can only get through travel to other cultures with their dearest and best friends. But they were just as happy spending time at their unique home in Bibb City overlooking the river and reading a good book on the deck, walking their dogs on the Riverwalk or just hanging out in their beloved neighborhood. They loved social events from a backyard barbecue to a black-tie gala and they were always the most elegantly dressed couple there. Watching them dance, their deep passion and respect for each other was evident. Rick always put Marquette first and you may think it was because she’s such a force of nature that he was afraid not to; but those who were lucky enough to see their big love up close, you knew that theirs was mutual devotion. They delighted in being each other’s North Star and knowing that they loved each other well and completely. They truly loved being together and the fact that they had so many, many things in common made spending time together so comfortable. She is grateful that she was able to care for him since cancer came calling nine years ago.

Rick had a wicked sense of humor that was never more present than over a sumptuous dinner with wine and his favorite cocktail of Woodford Reserve. He liked to chat up the wait staff and nearby diners, even asking if he could have a bite of what they had ordered. He met no strangers and people were drawn to his infectious laugh and the wide-open mouth face he often made in photos.

The Chattahoochee Valley has lost a kind soul, an entertainer, a philanthropist, a snappy dresser and a lover of all people and he’ll be deeply missed, but we are so much better for having him in our orbit.

Rick was preceded in death by his parents, Ruth Gordy Mock and Thomas McKnight, his adored grandmother, Annie Cassada McKnight and his dearest daughter Mitchi McKnight Wade. Survivors include his adoring and beloved light-of-his-life wife of 34 years Marquette McRae McKnight; son and daughter-in-law, Mac and Ansley McKnight;son-in-law, Travis Wade; grandchildren Ruthie and Martha Wade, Paul, Thomas and Ben McKnight; sister and brother-in-law, Pat and Bruce Kelley; brother and sister-in-law, Brian and Babs McKnight; sister and brother-in-law, Merriellen and Randy Thomas; sisters and brothers-in-law Michele and Mike Kent; Monique and Tim Warner; Mallory McRae, and Marissa and John Taylor.

His extended family was even larger and equally beloved including nieces and nephews, Wes and Selwyn Kelley, Drew and Shelley Kelley, Liz and Chad Mathis, Lt. Col. Brian McKnight, Courtney and Carson Thomas; Ryan and Bri Brown; Sean Dupuis; Kelsey MacMinn, Zak and Jennifer Taylor; Seaver Taylor, and Logan and Kayla Taylor; great-nieces and great-nephews, Lucy, Annie and Bonnie Kelley; Anna Beth, Katie and Garrison Kelley; Emma and Coleman Mathis, Mason and Maddox McKnight; Drew and Savannah Brown; Maggie, Alex and Sean Dupuis; River and Brannon MacMinn; Navy, Pepper and Atlas Taylor; and Beckett and Oakley Taylor. Part of Rick’s legacy is that he left a plethora of friends who were all near and dear to his heart.

Visitation will be held on Thursday, August 1, 2024 from 5:00-7:00 PM at St. Thomas Episcopal Church. A celebration of Rick’s life will be Friday, August 2, 2024 at 11:00 AM at St. Luke Church, 1104 Second Ave., Columbus.

Flowers are appreciated, but Rick preferred gifts of support that will live on for children and the arts. They may be sent to: FABArts, 214A 10th Street Columbus GA, 31901 or St. Thomas Episcopal Church Choral Scholars Fund, 2100 Hilton Avenue, Columbus, GA 31906.

“If I should ever die, God forbid, let this be my epitaph, ‘The only proof he needed for the existence of God was music.’ ”Author Kurt Vonnegut may not have known Rick McKnight, but that quote perfectly described him.