UVALDE, Texas (AP) _ About 1,500 mourners, including current and ormer elected leaders, gathered at a Uvalde church to remember former Texas Gov. Dolph Briscoe Jr.
Briscoe, who died at age 87 on Sunday, was lauded Thursday for his generosity and integrity _ a man mourners said was as comfortable in a small town drug store as he was in the governor’s mansion.
The Democratic rancher and banker presided over the state from 1972 to 1978 at a time when Texas was riding high on an oil and gas boom. Briscoe was defeated in the 1978 primary.
GOP Gov. Rick Perry and Democratic former Gov. Mark White were among those attending the service.
Briscoe’s remains are to be buried in a plot next to those of his late wife, Janey, at a family ranch.
(Copyright 2010 by The Associated Press.