The Texas Association of Business fired off an endorsement letter to Rep. Jim McReynolds, D-Lufkin, after telling him, his opponent, and everyone else they'd be endorsing Republican Jody Anderson in the HD-12 contest.TAB President Bill Hammond said the letter was a simple mistake — TAB's political action committee (called BACPAC) is sticking with Anderson.

Former Texas Gov. Ann Richards was laid to rest Monday at a private service followed by a memorial at UT's Frank Erwin Center attended by several thousand friends and admirers.

KUT-FM, the public radio station in Austin, has an audio version of the memorial service available online.

Richards was buried at the Texas State Cemetery on a hill with 13 other Texas governors and a host of historial figures. That service included words from comedienne Lily Tomlin and music from singer Nancy Griffith.

Former Dallas Mayor and Texas Secretary of State Ron Kirk led the memorial service, which featured a short film about Richards and music from soprano Jessye Norman and the Wesley United Methodist Church Intergenerational Choir. It included four speakers: New York Post gossip columnist Liz Smith, former San Antonio Mayor and U.S. Housing Secretary Henry Cisneros, U.S. Sen. Hilary Clinton, and Lily Adams, the oldest of Richards' grandchildren.

Adams, 19, followed that row of famous orators with stories about "Mammy," the name the grandkids had for Richards. She said the standards were high, but not harsh:

"There were the simple yet profound lessons Mammy taught us all. You can wear black with anything. Never wear patterned clothes on television. Stand up straight. Always wear your name tag on the right. And when you give a hand shake, do it like you mean it. But more importantly, Mammy taught us that life is about service. About helping the people you care about, helping them do the things they need to do and want to do, in politics or anything else...

"Mammy had learned the most important lesson of all and she was teaching it to all of us. That lesson was simple. This is your life. It is the only one you get. So no excuses, and no do-overs. If you make a mistake or fail at something you learn from it, you get over it, and you move on. Your job is to be the very best person you can be and to never settle for anything less."

Former Texas Court of Criminal Appeals Judge Louis Sturns of Fort Worth will join the Texas Safety Commission, which oversees the Texas Department of Public Safety. Sturns, appointed by Gov. Rick Perry, has been practicing law since he lost a reelection bid for the state's highest criminal court. He also did a stint as a Texas Racing Commissioner and a member of the state Ethics Commission.

Jay Dyer is the new general counsel to Texas Secretary of State Roger Williams. He's been the director of regulatory affairs at the Texas Association of Builders, and was with the Austin office of Vinson and Elkins before that. He's replacing Trey Trainor, who left SOS to go back to work for state Rep. Phil King, R-Weatherford. 

Dr. Dan Stutz is the new president and CEO of the Texas Hospital Association. He'll replace Richard Bettis, who has been in that job since 2001. They'll make the switch at the end of the year. Stultz, the CEO at Shannon Health System in San Angelo and the former chairman of THA's board of trustees, was hired after an 11-month search.

Gena Nivens Keller is the new director of communications for the Texas Cable and Telecommunications Association, a spot they'd been out-sourcing. Kirsten Voinis will stay on as an outside consultant. Keller has been running her own PR firm until now.

Lauren Presnal moves from the Texas Department of Agriculture to the Senate, where she'll be an aide to Sen. Kel Seliger, R-Amarillo.

Deaths: Former state District Judge Edward Marquez of El Paso, who convened a court of inquiry in 1994 to call the state to task for inadequate funding of highway projects in El Paso. He was 75.

Gregg Cooke, the former regional head of the Environmental Protection Agency, after a workout at the Dallas YMCA. He was named to that federal spot by President Bill Clinton, but retained by President George W. Bush, who opted for continuity (there were some clean air issues pending at the time) over party. Cooke worked in the Texas Attorney General's office before taking that federal post. Since leaving that gig, he'd been a lawyer with Guida, Slavich and Flores, a Dallas firm. He was 51.