It was Walsh's day on Walsh's field

For those not fortunate enough to attend Bill Walsh's public memorial service or watch it on TV or on the Internet today, here is my attempt at recapping the event via the live online broadcast.

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The public memorial service for 49ers coach Bill Walsh, who died at the age of 75 on July 30, began with a proclamation from San Francisco mayor Gavin Newsom. The grass upon which the 49ers play at Monster Park will now be known as "Bill Walsh Field."

That statement was a fitting summary of the day that followed. It truly was Bill Walsh Day at Bill Walsh Field.

Chris Berman emceed the event, and former 49ers tight end Charle Young, a member of Walsh's first two Super Bowl teams, offered a prayer for his coach. After a performance of "Amazing Grace," San Francisco senator Dianne Feinstein was next to speak.

Feinstein was the mayor of San Francisco in 1981, when the city was still reeling from former mayor George Moscone's assassination, the loss of many San Franciscans in the Jonestown Massacre and an emerging AIDS epidemic.

Feinstein spoke of her memories of that season, of The Catch and of the 49ers' victory over the Bengals in Super Bowl XVI. And she spoke of the effect that had on a city she called "broken."

"What that meant for this city," she said. "To win something, to do something right, to come back victorious."

A special video presentation by NFL Films was next, and Berman read a couple of letters from fans before introducing Dennis Green, a former assistant of Walsh's and a longtime head coach in the NFL.

Green's impassioned delivery was highlighted by his recount of the 49ers' victory over the Chicago Bears in frigid weather at Soldier Field in the 1988 NFC championship game. It is a victory often regarded as Walsh's finest hour.

"We handed it to the Chicago Bears because every single player on that team loved and believed in Bill Walsh," Green said. "If he said it was so, it was so."

Dwight Hicks, leader of the "Hot Licks" secondary that led the 49ers to that first Super Bowl, followed Green at the podium.

"Life is about the people that you meet, the relationships that you have and the lives that you touch," Hicks said. "Bill Walsh touched my life in a big way."

Steve Young stood right next to Walsh on the sideline for some of the coach's greatest moments. As Joe Montana’s backup, he witnessed first-hand the brilliance of Walsh's offensive mind.

"He loved having so many guys on the field," Young said. "It gave him more chess pieces out there. He reveled in dismantling the best defenses the NFL had."

Young didn't join the 49ers until 1987, but he understood the importance of that first Super Bowl team.

"All of us, including me, have been for 20 years sitting on the shoulders of what they built," he said. "We all witnessed it right here. ... There was one man who was the general, the man who brought it all together."

Carmen Policy, a member of the 49ers' front office through many of their glory years, talked of the pressure on owner Eddie DeBartolo when he hired Walsh, who had previously been seen as a good assistant but not "head coaching material." DeBartolo took a leap of faith in hiring Walsh, and while their relationship wasn’t always perfect, Walsh knew how important it was to make it work.

"Everything (Walsh) did, he did it in a way that he would be proud to look in the mirror and say, 'I did it the right way,'" Policy said. "The single most important decision that was made in the history of the 49ers over the past 30 years was Eddie DeBartolo’s singular decision to hire Bill Walsh as our head coach."

DeBartolo, who was forced away from the 49ers because of a political scandal involving a casino license in Louisiana, reveled in the gathering at Monster Park.

"We're not here today to mourn Bill Walsh’s death," he said. "We're here to celebrate his life. I can tell you Bill is smiling up in heaven looking down, because he knows he brought his whole family back together for this absolutely perfect moment."

DeBartolo spoke of Walsh's personal impact on his players, and the impact that had on the community of San Francisco. He saw that in the wake of the earthquake of 1989.

"For days, people were wandering around, feeling displaced and helpless," DeBartolo said. "As the owner of the 49ers, I was acutely aware that our success gave the community something to hold onto during these troubling times. That magical something was what Bill Walsh created."

Montana, who Berman referred to as the Robin to Walsh’s Batman, closed the service with stories illustrating Walsh’s sense of humor — "I’m sure he's up there making someone laugh right now," he said — and told of the deep relationships he had with his players.

"He loved the fans; he loved his coaches; he loved the organization,” Montana said. "Most of all, in the end he kept telling me, 'Please, please, please tell the guys how much I love them.' ... One thing I don't think he knows is how much we love him."

WITH MOST OF the focus centered on Monster Park and Walsh's memorial — and rightly so — the 49ers continued their training camp. Matt Barrows of the Sacramento Bee offers a rundown of this morning's practice, including a look at the apparently unlikely possibility of trading a receiver to Norv Turner's Chargers and an encouraging display (or lack thereof) from a kinder, mellower Vernon Davis.