Landry honored in dignified service

Tom Landry was honored at a church memorial today with a dignity befitting one who personified that virtue in life. Landry was buried in a private service on Wednesday.<br><br>The noontime service at

Thursday, February 17th 2000, 12:00 am

By: News On 6

Tom Landry was honored at a church memorial today with a dignity befitting one who personified that virtue in life. Landry was buried in a private service on Wednesday.

The noontime service at Highland Park United Methodist Church was restricted to family, friends and colleagues of the Hall of Fame coach who died of leukemia on Saturday. The Rev. Kenneth Dickson read passages from the Book of Psalms and the Book of Romans before leading mourners in the Lord's Prayer. Former Dallas Cowboys quarterback Roger Staubach then told the gathering that trying to sum up Mr. Landry's life was one of the toughest assignments of his life. He called his former coach was ``the greatest in the history of the NFL'' but also noted that Mr. Landry was a family man and a World War II hero. ``How difficult it is to capture all these things in only a few minutes,'' he said.

Overall, Mr. Staubach said, his former coach was a decent and stoic man who lived with dignity. ``Tom Landry had a decency about him that was unsurpassed by anyone I have ever known,'' the Hall of Fame quarterback said. Mr. Staubach also recounted memories of Mr. Landry's attention to detail before big games and his perserverance in difficult times. ``He helped us understand that his road was the high road,'' Mr. Staubach said. ``He was our rock, our hope, our inspiration. He was our coach.''

A parade of notable figures filed into the church on a gloomy, gray day, including former coach Gene Stallings, former Cowboys executive Tex Schramm and NFL Hall of Fame player Mel Renfro. No cameras were allowed inside the sanctuary. A public service is scheduled for 4 p.m. at the Morton H. Meyerson Symphony Center. he Meyerson seats about 1,800 people. Of those, 200 seats will be set aside for friends and family. The remaining 1,600 will be available on a first-come, first-served basis. Those unable to secure a seat in the hall will be offered one of 600 seats available in the Meyerson lobby, where people can watch the service on television monitors.

Those scheduled to speak this afternoon include National Football League commissioner Paul Tagliabue; Tex Schramm; Sam Huff, a former teammate of Mr. Landry 's with the New York Giants; former Cowboys players Roger Staubach, Dan Reeves, Don Perkins, Bob Lilly and Rayfield Wright; and Ann Murchison, widow of Cowboys founding owner Clint Murchison Jr. Mr. Landry, 75, was buried in Dallas on Wednesday during a private ceremony.