Jacob Durand Landry

1941 - 2020

Jacob Durand Landry, dearly loved father, father-in-law, grandfather and brother passed away peacefully surrounded by some of his children on December 3, 2020 in Austin, TX. He had many nicknames throughout his life including Buck, Jake, Papa, and Pere. He was born on February 12, 1941 in New Iberia, La., where he grew up in a family of 8 children raised by his loving parents, Jacob S. and Stephanie Landry. His childhood home in Olivier was an idyllic, peaceful, bayou paradise where the whole family often gathered together for years to create lasting memories. Jacob graduated from Catholic High School in 1959 where he was a scholar athlete and won the Torch Award. He was the first to earn the Eagle Scout rank with Paul Schwing as his Scout Master for Troop 133. After completing his freshman year of college at Notre Dame, he came back to his beloved Louisiana to complete his undergraduate studies followed by his law degree at Tulane University. He was a member of the Kappa Sigma fraternity at Tulane. He met and married Sherry Brown Landry while in law school and they settled in New Iberia to raise their 5 children. He spent the majority of his law career in the New Iberia law firm, Landry, Watkins & Bonin, founded by his father. He served as an Assistant District Attorney in the 16th Judicial District for several years, he received the Outstanding Young Lawyer of Louisiana award in 1980 and he served as President of the Louisiana Bar Association in 1987 (18 years after his father served in the same role). After their youngest child graduated from high school, they moved to New Orleans and then to Austin, TX following Hurricane Katrina. Jacob had a larger-than-life personality, especially to his family and children who all adored him. He was charismatic, charming, a great jokester and storyteller. His mother said, "he could charm a bird out of a tree." He had a passion for running, tennis, fine dining, reading and traveling. It was often said that you could not walk down a street in any city in the world without losing Jacob to a chance encounter with someone he knew. He reveled in family time, much to the chagrin of his teenage children back then but who now are quite thankful for that "required togetherness" that created wonderful memories. He was a kind and abundantly generous father and grandfather. He never lost his love for the Fighting Irish and it was fitting that he was wearing his Notre Dame shirt the day he passed away and it was perhaps looked upon favorably at the gates of Heaven. It is felt that when he got to the pearly gates, in typical Jacob fashion, he asked St. Peter if they served seafood inside, particularly inquiring about drum fish. After getting the raised eyebrow look and a "no" from St. Peter, Jacob replied, "that's too bad, I hear you can't beat a drum!!" And in he went! We hope that this eternal journey into the fullness of life brings him the healing and peace that we all seek. Jacob is survived by his son Jacob B. (Jay) Landry and his wife Debbie and granddaughters Grace and Mary of West Allis, WI; daughter Lauren Cheetham and her husband David and grandchildren Connor and Caroline of Dallas, TX; son Zachary Landry and his wife Stephanie and granddaughters Avery and MacKenna of Austin, TX; daughter Sherry Deitrick and her husband Rick and grandchildren Reece and Julia of Austin, TX; and daughter Christienne Parten and her husband Jim and grandchildren AnnaMaria and Eli of Austin, TX. Other survivors include his sisters, Stephanie (Sousou) Barineau and Louisan Frey both of Kingwood, TX; sister Toni Coopersmith of Mission Hills, KS; sister Courtney Saucier of Destrehan, LA; sister Mary Frances Landry of Baton Rouge, LA; and his brother Matt Landry of Austin, TX. He was preceded in death by his parents Jacob Segura and Stephanie Durand Landry: his brother William (Bill, Blackjack) Landry; and his wife of 43 years Sherry Brown Landry. Celebration of Life services will be postponed due to the Covid pandemic and will most likely take place in the early spring. We would like to express our deepest gratitude for the loving care Jacob received at Auberge Memory Care Bee Cave over the last two years. There are many people to thank for the heartfelt love and respect they gave to Jacob and our entire family. In lieu of flowers, the family asks friends to consider a tribute or memorial donation made to The Alzheimer's Association (act.alz.org), UT Southwestern Dementia Research (P.O. Box 910888, Dallas, Tx 75391-0888), or a charity of your choice.