Former President Barack Obama and his wife, Michelle were among the first to offer condolences to the Bush family immediately following the announcement that former First Lady Barbara Bush had died at age 92.
“We will always be grateful to Mrs. Bush for the generosity she showed to us throughout our time in the White House. But we are even more grateful for the way she lived her life as a testament to the fact that public service is an important and noble calling; as an example of the humility and decency that reflects the very best of the American spirit,” the Obamas write.
“She will be remembered for passing those American values on to her children, her grandchildren, her great-grandchildren – and to the countless citizens whom she and George inspired to become ‘points of light’ in service to others,” they added.
According to reports, although Obama ran in 2008 on a platform of reversing the policies of Barbara Bush’s son, then President George W. Bush, the two families have remained friendly through both their White House transitions.
The Obamas recalled the letter Bush’s granddaughters Jenna Bush Hager and Barbara Bush wrote to their daughters Malia and Sasha before they moved into the White House in 2009 about growing up in the spotlight. The bush girls wrote another letter to Malia and Sasha when they moved out in 2017.
Meanwhile, former President Obama joined by Michelle, were among more than 1,500 mourners including five living former Presidents who gathered the St. Martins Episcopal Church in Houston for going home service for Mrs. Bush that was immediately followed by a private funeral service at Texas A&M University on the grounds of the George H.W. Bush Presidential Library and Museum.
President Donald J. Trump was a no show, but his wife, Melania attended and seated next to the Obamas..
