Barbara Bush Dies at Age 92
Barbara Bush, the former First Lady married to George H.W. Bush, has died today.
The Office of George H. W. Bush confirmed her death on Tuesday, saying in a statement, “A former First Lady of the United States of America and relentless proponent of family literacy, Barbara Pierce Bush passed away Tuesday, April 17, 2018 at the age of 92.
“She is survived by her husband of 73 years, President George H. W. Bush; five children and their spouses, 17 grandchildren, seven great grandchildren; and her brother Scott Pierce. She was preceded in death by her second child, Pauline “Robin” Bush, and her siblings Martha Rafferty and James R. Pierce.”
The wife of the 41st President and the parent of the 43rd, Barbara remained a fixture in White House politics for decades, starting with her role as Second Lady during the 1980s under the Reagan administration. She worked tirelessly to promote the cause of universal literacy and parented six children with her husband of more than seven decades, including President George W. Bush. She leaves behind a legacy as the sharp-witted matriarch of one of Washington's most formidable families after dealing with extended illness in the last years of her life.
Born to Marvin and Pauline Pierce, Barbara Pierce grew up in the affluent suburb of Rye, New York, later attending the boarding school Ashley Hall in Charleston, South Carolina. At age 16, she met her future husband at a dance during Christmas vacation.
"Since I didn't waltz, we sat the dance out. And several more after that, talking and getting to know each other," George said later. "It was a storybook meeting."
After dating for a year, the couple announced their engagement just before George left for World War II. The naval pilot named three of his planes after his fiancée while serving in the Pacific. When he was shot down on September 2, 1944, Barbara didn't hear from him for more than a month. The couple then planned to wed on January 6, 1945, a date rescheduled to fit his leave.
Barbara and George welcomed their first son, George W. Bush, in 1946 and their daughter Pauline Robinson (Robin) in 1949. Newly settled in Texas, the family experienced one of its most trying times when doctors diagnosed Pauline with leukemia. "Neither of us had ever heard of it," Barbara remembered in her 1994 memoir. "George asked [the doctor] what the next step was; how did we cure her?"
The young parents soon learned of the disease's mortality, and traveled to New York to try to prolong their little girl's life. Despite expert care, Pauline passed away in 1953 at the age of 3. "Her death was very peaceful," Barbara wrote in her memoir. "One minute she was there, and the next she was gone. I truly felt her soul go out of that beautiful body ... I never felt the presence of God more strongly than at that moment."
Losing her daughter proved a true challenge (and reportedly prematurely turned Barbara's hair white), but joy returned into the Bushes' lives with the addition of Jeb, Neil, Marvin, and Dorothy to the family. Barbara took on most of the parenting duties, but fine-tuned her public speaking, campaigning, and political acumen with the rise of her husband's career.
George served as congressman, ambassador to the United Nations, chairman of the Republican National Committee, envoy to China, and director of the CIA during the '60s and '70s, with Barbara by his side offering advice every step of the way. By the time they moved into the White House in 1989, Barbara estimated she'd lived in 29 different houses.
Ronald Reagan selected George as his running mate in the 1980 presidential election, and the couple became VP and Second Lady for the first of two terms. Barbara used her presence on the national stage to promote her signature cause of universal literacy, writing children's books C. Fred’s Story and Millie’s Book based on the lives of her dogs to raise money for charities.
She established the Barbara Bush Foundation for Family Literacy in 1989, the same year she became First Lady. She called it "the most important issue we have," with statistics showing tens of millions of adults could not read beyond a basic level.
The perennially popular figure served as a major asset in her husband's albeit-unsuccessful 1992 reelection campaign. George appealed to her favorability by calling his wife "my favorite political philosopher" and a "statesman."
However, she reportedly disagreed with her husband on several policy issues, including abortion and the Equal Rights Amendment. In a 1990 commencement speech at Wellesley University, she made waves by speculating that someone in the audience might become the president’s spouse - “and I wish him well."
After losing the 1992 election, Barbara and George settled into retirement, spending time at their homes in Houston, Texas, and Kennebunkport, Maine. "When all the dust is settled and all the crowds are gone, the things that matter are faith, family and friends," she wrote in her 2004 autobiography, Barbara Bush: A Memoir. "We have been inordinately blessed, and we know that."
In 1999, she took to the campaign trail once again to support her son George W.'s bid for president. When he won in 2000 and again in 2004, she became one of only two first ladies who was also the mother of a president, the other being Abigail Adams. When rumors of Jeb's 2016 run surfaced, she stated "we've had enough Bushes" but ultimately supported her son's bid.
Barbara stayed strong during multiple health problems throughout her life. She dealt with the thyroid condition Grave's disease as well as reported diagnoses of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and congestive heart failure. A common lung disease, COPD affects about 20 to 30% of smokers, according to the Mayo Clinic. Barbara "smoked Newports by the pack," Vanity Fair reported, for 25 years until she quit in 1968.
Barbara was hospitalized in 2013 for pneumonia and received heart surgery in 2009, but "a series of recent hospitalizations" led her to decide against seeking additional medical treatment and instead focus on "comfort care," a family spokesman confirmed in April.
Granddaughter Jenna Bush Hager later stated on the TODAY show that Barbara and her husband remained as close as ever. "She’s with my grandpa, the man she’s loved for over 73 years,” she revealed. “They are surrounded by family, but I think the fact that they’re together and that he still says, ‘I love you Barbie’ every night is pretty remarkable."
Barbara herself addressed her health problems in a 2013 interview with CSPAN. "I don't have a fear of death for my precious George or for myself because I know that there is a great God," she said. "I know we'll see Robin again, one way or another, and our families. I have a great faith."
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