Former first lady Nancy Reagan, who
joined her husband on a storybook journey from Hollywood to the White House,
died Sunday.
She was 94.
Reagan died at her home in Los Angeles
of congestive heart failure, according to her spokeswoman, Joanne Drake, of the
Ronald Reagan Presidential Library.
"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," Drake said in a statement.
The former first lady requested that
contributions be made to the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library and Foundation
in lieu of flowers, the statement said.
Republican Party leaders paid tribute
Sunday.
"With
the passing of Nancy Reagan, we say a final goodbye to the days of Ronald
Reagan," wrote 2012 GOP presidential nominee Mitt Romney on Facebook.
"With charm, grace, and a passion for America, this couple reminded us of
the greatness and the endurance of the American experiment. ... God and Ronnie
have finally welcomed a choice soul home."
As first lady during Ronald Reagan's
eight years in the White House, she was known as the "Just say no" spokeswoman of anti-drug campaigns, and as
a fierce protector of her husband, both personally and politically. When Ronald
Reagan was shot in a 1981 assassination attempt, Nancy Reagan never left the
hospital where the president was treated until he was released, according to
Nancy Reagan's press secretary, Sheila Tate.
After she and her husband left
Washington, she became his protector again as he struggled with Alzheimer's
disease until his death in 2004. After his death, she remained a staunch
guardian of his image and legacy.
"She
was always the one who kept the flame alive," CNN senior political analyst
David Gergen, a former Reagan adviser, said Sunday.
Her official White House biography
quotes her as saying, "My life
really began when I married my husband."
Culled from CNN
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