Nancy Reagan, Former First Lady, Dies in California at 94

Nancy Reagan died on Sunday at her home in L.A. at the age of 94. Her spokeswoman Joanne Drake, confirmed her passing. “Mrs. Reagan will be buried at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library in Si...
Nancy Reagan, Former First Lady, Dies in California at 94
Written by Kimberly Ripley
  • Nancy Reagan died on Sunday at her home in L.A. at the age of 94. Her spokeswoman Joanne Drake, confirmed her passing.

    “Mrs. Reagan will be buried at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library in Simi Valley, California, next to her husband, Ronald Wilson Reagan, who died on June 5, 2004. Prior to the funeral service, there will be an opportunity for members of the public to pay their respects at the Library,” she said in a statement.

    2012 GOP presidential nominee Mitt Romney posted his thoughts on Nancy Reagan’s passing on social media.

    With the passing of Nancy Reagan, we say a final goodbye to the days of Ronald Reagan. With charm, grace, and a passion…

    Posted by Mitt Romney on Sunday, March 6, 2016

    Nancy Reagan served as first lady during husband Ronald Reagan’s eight years in the White House. She came to be known as the “Just say no” woman behind the anti-drug campaigns of that era.

    A devoted wife, Nancy Reagan never once left the hospital when when then-President Reagan was hospitalized following a 1981 assassination attempt.

    When Ronald Reagan suffered from Alzheimer’s in his post-presidential years, she was his protector. After he died in 2004, Nancy Reagan kept his memory alive.

    “She was always the one who kept the flame alive,” former Reagan adviser and CNN senior political analyst David Gergen said on Sunday.

    According to Nancy Reagan’s official biography, Ronald Reagan was the light of her life.

    “My life really began when I married my husband,” she said.

    Those closest to Nancy Reagan feared for her well being after her husband of 52 years died.

    “He was the center of her universe,” Nancy Reagan’s press secretary, Sheila Tate, said. “And I think when he died, we worried so much about how she’d hold up. But she always surprised me. Whenever the going got tough, Nancy Reagan did just fine.”

    Prior to her years in the White House, both Ronald and Nancy Reagan lived the Hollywood dream. Nancy Reagan appeared in 11 films between 1949 and 1956. It was during her Hollywood life that she met her husband.

    Funeral arrangements for Nancy Reagan will likely be announced later on Sunday or on Monday.

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