Rick Dye is key to the Scopes Trial Play, both in front of and behind the scenes

Over the years, Rick Dye has held several roles connected to the Scopes Trial Play & Heritage Days. He has been president of the Rhea Heritage Preservation Foundation since it was chartered in 2016 and has played Clarence Darrow for several years. The RHPF produces the play and festival each July.

Rick and his wife, Tammy, have four grown children and 15 grandchildren. He had a diversified career in banking, finance, restaurant and health club management, publishing and radio sales, and retired in 2021 after 20 years as a senior account manager at Peak Technologies.

An avid fly fisherman, Rick fishes both fresh and saltwater. He is also a scuba diver with several certifications and loves to treasure hunt in the Caribbean Sea and the Bahamas. 

“Yes, I have kissed a shark,” he says. 

Over the years RHPF has expanded its activities to include a short production designed to promote our history to students grades 8–12, Nokian Summer Nights concerts on the courthouse lawn, and two old-time “Radio Theater” productions during PumpkinFest and Christmas at the Courthouse. 

“I have to say the Scopes Trial Play: Destiny in Dayton is at the top of my list,” Rick said. “Having been in every production since 1993 has been a real treat.

“Sharing the true story of how the trial got started and the trial itself. Being able to do a production that is based on the actual trial transcript in the preserved courtroom where it actually took place is a rare privilege.”

The most important thing for the public to know about the Scopes Trial, according to Rick, is that Dayton is not Hillsboro. The town leaders had the courage to host the debate on what was probably the most controversial topic of the day. Each day Darrow and William Jennings Bryan took sides in the courtroom and fiercely defended their chosen positions. But each day at 4 p.m. the heated debate ceased. When not in the courtroom they were civil and respectful.