Barbara Bush

**Barbara Pierce Bush** (June 8, 1925 – April 17, 2018) was an American advocate who served as the first lady of the United States from 1989 to 1993 as the wife of George H. W. Bush, the 41st U.S. president. Before becoming first lady, she was the second lady from 1981 to 1989 when her husband was vice president.

### Early life and education

Barbara Pierce was born on June 8, 1925 at Booth Memorial Hospital in New York City, She is second daughter of four children from Pauline Pierce and Marvin Pierce. She was raised in Indian Village in Rye, New York, and received her primary education at Milton Public School and Rye Country Day School before attending Ashley Hall, a boarding school in South Carolina.

### Marriage and children

Pierce married Bush at the Rye First Presbyterian Church on January 6, 1945, when she was 19 years old. For the first eight months of their marriage, Bush and her husband moved around the Eastern United States, to places including Michigan, Maryland, and Virginia. They had five children together named George, Robin, Jeb, Neil, Marvin, and Dorothy Bush.

## Second Lady of the United States (1981–1989)

Bush became the second lady of the United States when her husband was sworn in as the 43rd vice president on January 20, 1981. As second lady, Bush joined several associations and programs to promote literacy. She also traveled across the United States and abroad, both with her husband and solo while representing him. By the end of her eight years as second lady, Bush counted 65 different nations that she had visited.

## First Lady of the United States (1989–1993)

Bush became the first lady of the United States when her husband was sworn in as the 41st president on January 20, 1989. As first lady, her day-to-day activities often included charity work, meetings, or interviews until 6pm, and give tours of the White House. She also exercised in the White House pool, swimming 72 laps to complete a mile each day.

While as first lady, Bush continued her work in promoting literacy that she had started while as second lady. In March 1989, she founded the Barbara Bush Foundation for Family Literacy to promote further literacy programs. In 1990, she hosted the _Mrs. Bush's Storytime_ radio program for ABC, which she read to children. She wrote the children's book _Millie's Book_ about Millie's new litter of puppies in 1990.

Bush donated the profits to her literacy foundation. During her time as first lady, she raised millions of dollars to fund literacy programs, including from companies such as GM and Motorola. Her advocacy contributed to the 1989 education summit, and she convinced her husband to end his opposition to the National Literacy Act of 1991, allowing it to be passed into law.

## Death and funeral

Bush died in her Houston home at the age of 92 on April 17, 2018. President Donald Trump ordered flags to half-staff in her memory. Her funeral was held at St. Martin's Episcopal Church in Houston on April 21, 2018. She was buried at the George Bush Presidential Library in College Station, Texas, beside the grave of her daughter Robin.

## Awards and honors

In 1995, Bush received the Award for Greatest Public Service Benefiting the Disadvantaged, an award given out annually by the Jefferson Awards Foundation. In 1997, she was the recipient of The Miss America Woman of Achievement Award for her work with literacy programs. The same year, she received the Golden Plate Award of the American Academy of Achievement. In 2016, she received honorary membership in Phi Beta Kappa from the University of Houston chapter.

Multiple schools are named after Barbara Bush. Schools have been named Barbara Bush Elementary School in Houston; Grand Prairie, Texas; and Mesa, Arizona. Schools have been named Barbara Bush Middle School in San Antonio and Irving, Texas. The Barbara Bush Children's Hospital at Maine Medical Center in Portland, Maine, was also named in her honor.

## Infobox (officeholder)

- **name**: Barbara Bush
- **image**: Barbara_Bush,_official_portrait_(1992)_(cropped).jpg
- **president**: George H. W. Bush
- **term start**: January 20, 1989
- **term end**: January 20, 1993
- **term label**: In role
- **predecessor**: Nancy Reagan
- **successor**: Hillary Clinton
- **vicepresident1**: George H. W. Bush
- **term start1**: January 20, 1981
- **term end1**: January 20, 1989
- **term label1**: In role
- **predecessor1**: Joan Mondale
- **successor1**: Marilyn Quayle
- **birth name**: Barbara Pierce
- **birth place**: New York City, New York, U.S.
- **death place**: Houston, Texas, U.S.
- **restingplace**: George H.W. Bush Presidential Library and Museum
- **party**: Republican Party (United States), Republican
- **education**: Smith College
- **signature**: Barbara Bush Signature.svg
- **caption**: Barbara Bush in 1992
- **title1**: Second Ladies and Gentlemen of the United States, Second Lady of the United States
- **title**: First Lady of the United States