Lance Christopher Pace

To Lori, Trinity, Lynley, and the rest of Lance´s extended family, Christine and I were shocked and deeply saddened to learn of Lance´s passing. Please know that we are praying for all of you during this incredibly difficult time.

Lance introduced himself to me on his first day at Dulles High School in a Spanish class, and we became fast friends. I am so grateful that we were randomly seated next to each other that day! Lance and I soon learned that we shared many interests, including sports, movies, music, and exotic cars. I can trace my interest in some of my favorite musicians back to Lance, who would often loan me CDs from his collection.

Lance and I were children of the 1980s, proud members of what is now called Generation X. We shared an optimism about our future in this country and a belief that we could build great lives and careers for ourselves in Houston. I was so impressed seeing Lance persevere through law school and become an attorney. His passion for real estate development, particularly his work at MetroNational, was infectious. He loved talking about the growth of the Memorial City business district, and over the past 20 years I´ve been amazed by what has risen there, including the Memorial Hermann Hospital, the redeveloped Memorial City Mall, and so many other beautiful projects. That corridor stands as a striking testament to commerce, community, and opportunity, everything great about Houston and our country. Lance´s work is visible there every day, seen by thousands of Houstonians. I was so moved to see it lit up in TCU purple in his honor last week. What an extraordinary legacy.

I´ll finish with a few other cherished memories.

Lance and I shared a great love for the Houston Rockets, and we celebrated both of their titles together in 1994 and 1995. I will never forget those times. Pure joy.

Lance became a father just 24 hours before I did. Our first children were born a day apart in June 2002, and I spoke with him and Lori while Christine was in labor with Tara. Even then, he already had great advice to share. Lance was the consummate "girl dad," and he loved every minute of being their father. I know how deeply he loved his entire family.

Lance was destined to become an attorney, but he had a creative streak and might have been a great artist. Lance had an eye for design, and he noticed the wonderful details that define greatness in art and engineering. I watched The Godfather movies for the first time with Lance, who pointed out exquisite details in the filmmaking that I still notice every time I rewatch them. He was an early advocate for Apple computers and, later, the iPhone. He also loved Air Jordans and proudly wore them in our high school days. He shared his observations about what makes some things beautiful, and I see so much beauty in our world because of that. Thank you, Lance.

It´s tough to write much about Lance without remarking on how tall he was. A gentle giant if there ever was one. Lance was well over a foot taller than me, and as I´ve gotten older, I know how rare it is to form a friendship like that. Lance was naturally an introvert, but it´s hard to be introverted when you are always the tallest person in room. So much is expected of a person who stands so tall, and for Lance it was a duty that he took upon himself as he grew into adulthood. Lance used his mind and his keen wit to become a socially outgoing and genuinely caring person. He complimented people and lifted us up on his very broad shoulders. Lance treated every person he met with dignity and respect, because he knew that were all are children of God. He just happened to be a little closer to Heaven than the rest of us. We are all better for having known Lance Pace, and he will be greatly missed.

I know that I will think about him every day for the rest of my life.