Former first lady remembered
BARBARA BUSH DIED TUESDAY
Barbara Bush was the “first lady of the greatest generation.” Addressing former presidents, ambassadors and hundreds of other mourners inside the nation’s largest Episcopal church on Saturday, historian Jon Meacham recalled Barbara Bush’s quick wit that made her so popular. He also spoke of her devotion to her husband of 73 years, former President George H.W. Bush, noting he was the “only boy she ever kissed.”
Meacham recalled her work bringing awareness to AIDS patients and in promoting literacy. He also said the wife of the 41st president and the mother of the 43rd was “candid and comforting, steadfast and straightforward, honest and loving.”
Meacham, who wrote a 2015 biography on George H.W. Bush, joined some 1,500 people on a grey, rainy Saturday to honour Barbara Bush at the private funeral, filling St. Martin’s Episcopal Church in Houston a day after more than 6,000 people paid their respects during a public viewing.
Her son, former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush, joked during his eulogy that his mother called her style of mothering him and his siblings “a benevolent dictatorship — but honestly it wasn’t always benevolent.” He emphasized how she believed in the power of laughter and that joy should be shared.
He choked up when saying his mother —known for her self-deprecating remarks about her wrinkles and grey hair — was “beautiful” until the very end. Bush said he felt priviliged that he had a “front row” seat to the incredible love story that his parents shared.
His father, George H.W. Bush, was helped into the cavernous sanctuary with a wheelchair behind his sons, former President George W. Bush and Jeb Bush. He laughed as Meacham and others recalled his wife’s wicked sense of humour.
Seated near the front of the church in the same pew were two other former presidents — Bill Clinton and Barack Obama — along with their wives and current first lady Melania Trump. A eulogy was also given by Barbara Bush’s longtime friend, Susan Baker, wife of former Secretary of State James A. Baker III.
Her granddaughters delivered readings during the service and her grandsons served as pallbearers before their grandmother’s casket was wheeled out of the church. George H.W. Bush followed in his wheelchair, pushed by son George W. Bush, shaking hands with some of the people in the pews. In his lap, he carried his glasses and a copy of the funeral program.
Barbara Bush died, with her husband by her side, at their home in Houston on Tuesday at age 92.
Flags were flown at half-mast as the service began as the choir sang “My Country Tis of Thee.” The church was adorned with sprays of yellow garden roses, yellow snap dragons, antique hydrangeas and other flowers.
Other guests included former Rep. Gabby Giffords and her husband, retired astronaut Mark Kelly, and professional golfer Phil Mickelson, along with Karl Rove, and other former White House staff. Many were seen embracing in the church before the service.