The Latest: Funeral arrangements set for Barbara Bush

The Associated Press
The Associated Press

HOUSTON (AP) — The Latest on the death of former first lady Barbara Bush (all times local):

10:10 p.m.

Funeral services for Barbara Bush are planned for 11 a.m. Saturday at St. Martin’s Episcopal Church in Houston, which she and former President George H.W. Bush regularly attended.

According to a post on the George Bush Presidential Library Foundation website, Barbara Bush will lie in repose from noon to midnight Friday at the church for members of the public wishing to pay respects.

The funeral service Saturday is by invitation only.

Burial will be on the grounds of the Bush library at Texas A&M University in College Station, about 100 miles (161 kilometers) northwest of Houston. The couple’s 3-year-old daughter, Robin, who died in 1953 of leukemia, also is buried at the site.

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10 p.m.

President Donald Trump is ordering U.S. flags to be flown at half-staff in honor of former first lady Barbara Bush, who died Tuesday at the age of 92.

In a proclamation issued Tuesday night, Trump says Americans mourn the loss of “an outstanding and memorable woman of character.” He calls Mrs. Bush “an advocate of the American family” who “lived a life that reminds us always to cherish our relationships with friends, family, and all acquaintances.”

The proclamation calls for flags to remain lowered until sunset on the day of her burial.

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9:35 p.m.

A spokeswoman says former President George H.W. Bush held the hand of his wife, Barbara Bush, all day and was by her side when she died.

Jean Becker, the chief of staff at Bush’s office in Houston, said in a statement released by Bush family spokesman Jim McGrath that the 41st president “is broken-hearted to lose his beloved Barbara.”

The former first lady died Tuesday in Houston. She was 92.

Becker says it’s a “very challenging time” for the 93-year-old Bush, but “he also is stoic and strong, and is being lifted up by his large and supportive family.”

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9 p.m.

Former President Jimmy Carter paid tribute to Barbara Bush’s “warmth, generosity and keen wit” following the former first lady’s death.

A family spokesman says Bush died Tuesday at age 92.

Carter says Bush was “the matriarch of a family dedicated to serving.” In a statement, he says that through Bush’s “work to promote literacy as a value in every American home, countless families now have the knowledge and skills they need to thrive in all aspects of their lives.”

Carter says he and former first lady Rosalynn Carter are saddened by her death and they’ll miss her.

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8:10 p.m.

Former President Lyndon Johnson’s daughter Lynda Johnson Robb says she smiles when she thinks of Barbara Bush, saying her candor was always refreshing and her grace was endless.

Robb says Bush’s love of family “never wavered and she was always a true patriot.” She says her family was fortunate to know her and “will always be grateful for her service to our country.”

Robb’s sister, Lucy Baines Johnson, describes Bush as a “no nonsense” devoted mother to her family and the nation and was “wit, wisdom, honesty, and character on two feet.”

Johnson says Bush inspired “a ‘thousand points of light’ of service to our country and was a beacon to us all. We loved her for who she was and for what we became because of her example. Our hearts go out to her remarkable family and to all who loved her as we did. The world is a poorer placer without Barbara Bush.”

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8:05 p.m.

Former President Bill Clinton and former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton are calling former first lady Barbara Bush a remarkable woman with “grit and grace, brains and beauty.”

The Clintons, in a statement shortly after Barbara Bush’s death was announced Tuesday, say she was “fierce and feisty in support of her family and friends, her country and her causes.”

Clinton says she “showed us what an honest, vibrant, full life looks like. Hillary and I mourn her passing and bless her memory.”

Clinton defeated her husband, George H.W. Bush, in the 1992 election.

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7:45 p.m.

President Donald Trump and the first lady are paying tribute to Barbara Bush after her death Tuesday.

The White House says in a statement posted on the president’s Twitter feed that the Trumps “join the nation in celebrating Barbara Bush.”

The statement hails the former first lady as “an advocate of the American family” and says she “will be long remembered for her strong devotion to country and family, both of which she served unfailingly well.”

The Trumps are also praising Mrs. Bush for “recognizing the importance of literacy as a fundamental family value that requires nurturing and protection.”

In a separate statement, Melania Trump is offering her “heartfelt condolences and prayers” to the Bush family.

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7:15 p.m.

Former President George W. Bush says he and his family are saddened by the death of his mother, former first lady Barbara Bush.

But the 43rd president says the family’s “souls are settled because we know hers was.”

A family spokesman says Barbara Bush died Tuesday. A family statement Sunday had said she had decided to terminate medical treatment for assorted ailments and would seek comfort therapy instead.

In his statement, George W. Bush calls his mother “a fabulous first lady and a woman unlike any other who brought levity, love and literacy to millions.” He says his mother “kept us on our toes and kept us laughing until the end.”

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6:50 p.m.

Former first lady Barbara Bush has died. She was 92.

Family spokesman Jim McGrath said in a statement that she died Tuesday in Houston. She had decided to decline further medical treatment for health problems and focus instead on “comfort care” at home in Houston.

The snowy-haired Mrs. Bush was one of only two first ladies who was also the mother of a president. The other was Abigail Adams, wife of John Adams and mother of John Quincy Adams.

Mrs. Bush’s plainspoken manner and utter lack of pretense made her more popular at times than her husband. She brought a grandmotherly style to buttoned-down Washington, often appearing in her trademark fake pearl chokers and displaying no vanity about her white hair and wrinkles.

She married George H.W. Bush in 1945. They had six children and were married longer than any presidential couple in American history.

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