A former First Lady of the United States of America and relentless proponent of family literacy, Barbara Pierce Bush, passed away Tuesday, April 17, 2018 at the age of 92.
Mrs. Bush married George H.W. Bush in January of 1945. In 1943, Mr. Bush earned his wings at Naval Air Station- Corpus Christi, and the couple has an extensive history here. Below is a photo of President George H.W. Bush with his aviation cadet class in Corpus Christi, 1943.
Mrs. Bush loved taking photographs, and over 100 of her personal scrapbooks were donated to the George H.W. Bush Presidential Library and Museum. In those scrapbooks, we found photos from September 24, 1965 of the couple in Corpus Christi at the Pink Elephant Ball.
Mr. and Mrs. Bush visited the area many times. President Bush made a speech at NAS-Corpus Christi on December 27, 1989 about the fall of Manuel Noriega in Panama. He mentioned how great it was to be back in Corpus Christi, where he was the youngest to earn his wings at the Naval Air Station.
Members of the public are invited to pay their respects to Mrs. Bush on Friday, April 20 at St. Martin’s Church at 717 Sage Road in Houston where she will lay in repose between noon and midnight. Visitors must first park and go through security at the Second Baptist Church at 6400 Woodway Drive. A shuttle will take visitors to St. Martin’s Church. The Second Baptist parking lot will open at 10:00 a.m. and shuttles will begin at 11:30 a.m.
The funeral service for Mrs. Bush is Saturday at St. Martin’s Church and is by invitation only.
