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| (White House photo/ Pete Souza) |
Former First Lady Nancy Reagan died today in Bel Air, California, at the age of 94. The cause of death was congestive heart failure.
Here's President and Mrs. Obama's statement on the highly influential former First Lady:
Nancy Reagan once wrote that nothing could prepare you for living in the White House. She was right, of course. But we had a head start, because we were fortunate to benefit from her proud example, and her warm and generous advice. Our former First Lady redefined the role in her time here. Later, in her long goodbye with President Reagan, she became a voice on behalf of millions of families going through the depleting, aching reality of Alzheimer’s, and took on a new role, as advocate, on behalf of treatments that hold the potential and the promise to improve and save lives. We offer our sincere condolences to their children, Patti, Ron, and Michael, and to their grandchildren. And we remain grateful for Nancy Reagan’s life, thankful for her guidance, and prayerful that she and her beloved husband are together again.As the statement notes, after leaving the White House, Mrs. Reagan became an advocate for utilizing stem cell research to fight illnesses such as Alzheimer's, standing up against ultra- right "pro life" extremists. According to her daughter, in later years she supported same sex marriage. She also gave birth to Ron, Jr., and Patti, who turned out to be quite decent people in their own right.
Rest in peace.
(Photo: Nancy Reagan with President Obama for the signing of the Ronald Reagan Centennial Commission Act in 2009.)
