Tom Luce, prominent Texas attorney and public servant, dies at 86<\/a><\/p>\nThe Rev. Dr. Christopher D. Girata, rector of the church, welcomed mourners before reflections from Luce\u2019s daughter, Ellen Luce Tucker; his grandson, Thomas Luce IV; and former Texas House Speaker Joe Straus, a San Antonio Republican who led the chamber from 2009 to 2019.<\/p>\n
Among those attending were Ross Perot Jr., chairman of Hillwood and The Perot Companies, and members of his family. Luce was a longtime adviser and personal attorney to Perot\u2019s father, Ross Perot Sr., and worked closely with both generations on business and civic endeavors.<\/p>\n
Pam Luce, his wife of more than 66 years, attended with their family.<\/p>\n
Looking across the church, Tucker recalled one of her father\u2019s rules: Show up for funerals and weddings, and arrive early.<\/p>\n
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\u201cMy dad\u2019s faith was the foundation of everything,\u201d Tucker said.<\/p>\n
His faith shaped his family life and the causes he pursued, she said. Tucker remembered a father who helped her recognize gifts she could not see in herself, then showed her how to use them in service to others.<\/p>\n
\u201cMy dad never sat me down and had a gospel conversation with me,\u201d she said. \u201cRather, he gave me a vision of the gospel day in and day out.\u201d<\/p>\n
Straus described Luce as a trusted counselor who could turn ambitious ideas into lasting institutions.<\/p>\n
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Thomas Luce, IV speaks about his late grandfather Tom\u00a0W. Luce III during a service for him at Saint Michael and All Angels Episcopal Church in Dallas, August 15, 2026. The influential Dallas attorney, public policy reformer, and civic leader passed away at the age of 86.<\/p>\n
Tom Fox\/The Dallas Morning News<\/p>\n
Luce was the founding and managing partner of Hughes & Luce. As chief of staff of the 1984 Texas Select Committee on Public Education, he helped advance reforms that included the state\u2019s \u201cno pass, no play\u201d rule.<\/p>\n
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He later served as assistant secretary for planning, evaluation and policy development at the U.S. Department of Education under President George W. Bush. He was also the founding CEO of the Meadows Mental Health Policy Institute and the founder and chairman emeritus of Texas 2036.<\/p>\n
Straus called Luce an architect of the most significant public education reforms in Texas since desegregation.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe simply needed an opportunity to make the lives of others better,\u201d Straus said. \u201cAnd then he took it from there.\u201d<\/p>\n
Luce\u2019s approach was straightforward, Straus said: See a problem clearly, bring the right people together and keep working until progress was made.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere are two types of people: those who walk into a room and say, \u2018Here I am,\u2019 and those who say, \u2018Ah, there you are,\u2019\u201d Straus said. \u201cTom was a \u2018there you are\u2019 person. He was always more interested in you, and he made you feel that.\u201d<\/p>\n
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To his family, Luce\u2019s legacy could be found in traditions far removed from government and public policy.<\/p>\n
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Former Texas House speaker Joe Straus speaks about his late friend Tom W. Luce III during a service for him at Saint Michael and All Angels Episcopal Church in Dallas, August 15, 2026. The influential Dallas attorney, public policy reformer, and civic leader passed away at the age of 86.<\/p>\n
Tom Fox\/The Dallas Morning News<\/p>\n
\u201cLawyer. Public servant. Trusted adviser. Problem solver. Mentor,\u201d Thomas Luce IV said. \u201cBut to our family, he was something far more important.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHe was simply Pawpaw,\u201d he said. \u201cOur hero. Our mentor. My biggest fan. Our best friend.\u201d<\/p>\n
Luce called his seven grandsons the \u201cMagnificent Seven.\u201d When each turned 10, Luce and his wife, Pam, took him on a trip. Thomas Luce IV recalled visiting Chicago, Wrigley Field and an ESPN studio with his grandparents.<\/p>\n
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\u201cAt 10 years old, it just felt like an incredible trip,\u201d he said. \u201cBut looking back at it now, I realized he was giving us something far more valuable: his undivided time.\u201d<\/p>\n
In the weeks before his death, Luce spoke about two things he still hoped to do, his grandson said: return to Hawaii\u2019s Big Island and attend Thomas and Madison Luce\u2019s wedding.<\/p>\n
He did not make it back to Hawaii. But he arrived in Telluride wearing his tuxedo and ready to celebrate with his family.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen it was Pawpaw\u2019s time to go, he was exactly where he wanted to be,\u201d his grandson said.<\/p>\n
Thomas Luce IV said he found comfort knowing his grandfather\u2019s final journey brought him to the mountains, surrounded by the family he had spent his life gathering.<\/p>\n
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\u201cYou spent your entire life lifting others,\u201d he said. \u201cAnd now, it\u2019s our turn. We promise to help create waves for others, just like you did for all of us.\u201d<\/p>\n
The Rev. Chip Edens delivered the homily. He joked that he could not imagine Luce as a \u201ccloud sitter\u201d in heaven for more than seven minutes.<\/p>\n
Edens pictured Luce arriving in a pinstripe suit, introducing himself as \u201cTom Luce from Texas\u201d and learning that another project awaited him.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen\u2019s the meeting?\u201d Edens imagined Luce asking. \u201cI\u2019ll be there 15 minutes early.\u201d<\/p>\n
Edens said Luce believed faith had to take form through action. The biblical passages read during the service called believers to do justice, love mercy and walk humbly, he said.<\/p>\n
\u201cFaith, for Tom, was not something to admire,\u201d Edens said. \u201cIt was something to believe and to live out every single day.\u201d<\/p>\n
Edens said Luce built institutions others could use and invested in people who would continue the work.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe did not collect followers,\u201d Edens said. \u201cHe cultivated successors.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019ll take it from here, Tom,\u201d Edens said near the end of the homily, adding that Luce would be \u201ccheering us on all along the way.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The Reverend Dr. Christopher D. Girata escorts Pam Luce, widow of the late Tom W. Luce III, from…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":408211,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[9],"tags":[102,104,103],"class_list":["post-408210","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-dallas","tag-dallas","tag-dallas-headlines","tag-dallas-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/408210","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=408210"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/408210\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/408211"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=408210"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=408210"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=408210"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}