"Laura and I are deeply saddened by the death of Ruth Bell Graham, a remarkable woman
of faith whose life was defined by her belief in a personal, loving, and gracious God," said Bush, a self declared born-again Christian.
"She was an encouraging friend, accomplished poet, and devoted mother of five and grandmother of 19," he added in a statement hours after she passed away on Thursday, June 14, at her home at Little Piney Cove in Montreat, North Carolina, surrounded by her husband and all five children.
"Ruth’s marriage to her husband Billy was a true and loving partnership. As the wife of the world’s most beloved evangelist, she inspired people around the world with her humor, intelligence, elegance, and kindness," the president said. "Laura and I offer our prayers and condolences to Billy and the Graham family."
TELEVISION EVANGELIST
Others, including American television evangelist Pat Robertson, also expressed sorrow over the
death of Ruth Bell Graham, who died at age 87. "I join with millions who mourn the passing of a great saint of God, Ruth Graham," he said.
"For decades Ruth Graham has been an inspiration to us all and a tower of strength for her husband who has been the pre-eminent evangelist of the 20th century," Robertson said.
He recalled how she had been supporting her husband while struggling with ailments and how she became wheelchair-bound after suffering spinal meningitis in 1995.
That condition was exacerbated by a degenerative back condition that began with a fall out of a tree while helping a grandchild fix a swing in 1974. However, "Her health struggles are now over and she is with the Lord she served so well," Robertson said.
NANCY REAGAN
Former first lady Nancy Reagan also joined those mourning the death of Ruth Graham. "Ronnie and I were blessed to know Ruth Graham as a friend for many decades," she said n published remarks. She stressed that the preacher’s wife, "also found the time to care about other children and those less fortunate through her work as an author, poet and philanthropist."
Born June 10, 1920, in Qingjiang, Kiangsu, China, as the daughter of medical missionaries L. Nelson and Virginia Leftwich Bell, she had a passion for evangelism.
She eventually attended Wheaton College in Wheaton, Ill where she was soon introduced to her future husband. After they married in August, 1943, she surrendered her dream of becoming missionary in Tibet to become her husband’s closest confidant.
"No one else could have borne the load that she carried. She was a vital and integral part of our ministry, and my work through the years would have been impossible without her encouragement and support," Graham said about his wife. He said her final resting place will be at the foot of a cross-shaped walkway in the Prayer Garden on the grounds of the recently dedicated Library bearing his name adjacent to his ministry headquarters in Charlotte.
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