how did betty ford die

[3], Spiro Agnew resigned as vice president on October 10, 1973. [60] The spike in women self-examining after Ford went public with the diagnosis led to an increase in reported cases of breast cancer, a phenomenon known as the "Betty Ford blip". [101] That same year, Ford received the Golden Plate Award of the American Academy of Achievement. "[10], Ford was popular with the American public. "She has been an inspiration to so many through her efforts to educate women about breast cancer and her wonderful work at the Betty Ford Center," Reagan said. WebBetty Ford was born on April 8, 1918 and died on July 8, 2011. In private, she triumphed over serious personal adversity. [15] This open affection was evident from the beginning of Gerald Ford's presidency. [107] In 2000, the Lasker Foundation awarded Ford its annual Mary Woodard Lasker Public Service Award. Nor did she address her relationship with alcohol, which she, at the time, believed was typical consumption. Betty Ford, who died yesterday at the age of ninety-three, got married the year she turned twenty-four, to a furniture salesman who did not become the President of the United States. That same year, she joined First Ladies Lady Bird Johnson and Rosalynn Carter to open and participate in the National Women's Conference in Houston, Texas, where she endorsed measures in the convention's National Plan of Action, a report sent to the state legislatures, the U.S. Congress, and the President on how to improve the status of American women. I can even wear my evening clothes., She advised women facing such an operation to go as quickly as possible and get it done., Once its done, she said, put it behind you and go on with your life.. "[34] This reflects a common trend of American first ladies often being more popular than the presidents to which they are married. [3][19] Ford registered herself at the hospital on April 11, 1978. [5] Warren was an alcoholic and diabetic, and was in poor health. Neither was shy about their mutual love and equal respect, and they were known to have a strong personal and political partnership.
This prospect elated Ford. [25][26] The dinner was held in the John Quincy Adam's Drawing Room, one of the Diplomatic Reception Rooms at the United States Department of State headquarters at the Harry S Truman Building. Asked about her illness, she said, "I'm very glad that I brought cancer to the forefront.". President Obama noted how Betty Ford "distinguished herself through her courage and compassion. In 1985, Ford received the Los Angeles AIDS Projects "Commitment to Life Award". [36], During her time as first lady, Ford was an outspoken advocate of women's rights and was a prominent force in the Women's Movement of the 1970s. [58] Ford decided to be open about her illness because "There had been so much cover-up during Watergate that we wanted to be sure there would be no cover-up in the Ford administration. Shortly after becoming president in 1974, Ford said, "I am indebted to no man and to only one woman, my dear wife.". In another instance, she commented, "it's just impossible for me to lie and look someone in the eyes and talk to them.

Ford, the oldest surviving former U.S. president, died peacefully at 6:45 p.m. PT (9:45 p.m. Ford assisted in fundraising for the little-known Hospital for Sick Children in Washington, D.C., whose patients were predominantly African American. [69][70], On January 19, 1977, her last full day as first lady, Betty Ford used her training as a Martha Graham dancer to jump up on the Cabinet Room table. "But the fact that I was the wife of the President put it in headlines and brought before the public this particular experience I was going through. Oh, no heavens, no, she replied. Borrowing a skeleton from a hospital, she dressed it in her hat and coat and sat it in a bedroom chair to welcome him. [19] Ford said, during her husband's failed 1976 presidential campaign, "I would give my life to have Jerry have my poll numbers. She supported the equal rights amendment and the legalization of abortion.

Ford left $500,000 to the Betty Ford Center. At first, Betty wasnt sure she wanted to attach her name to a rehab center, fearing that it would be embarrassing for her if she relapsed, McCubbin says. During the period after the election, Ford postponed scheduled plans to give her slated successor, Rosalyn Carter, a tour of the White House. [3][5], In 1942, Elizabeth Bloomer married William G. Warren,[5][4] whom she had known since she was 12. In 2004, Ford reaffirmed her pro-abortion rights stance and her support for the 1973 U.S. Supreme Court decision in Roe v. Wade, as well as her belief in and support for the ratification of the ERA. [3] Ford remarked, "I agree with the Supreme Courts ruling. Mrs. Ford brought a relaxed touch to the White House within days of moving in. Betty's cause of death was natural causes. The week she entered rehab, Ford disclosed her addiction to prescription medication. 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Political partnership the time, believed was typical consumption moving in [ 91 ], As First Pat. Expressed admiration and friendship toward First Lady, Ford was an advocate of the movement! Toward First Lady Pat Nixon active leader and activist of the feminist movement after the midterm.. Ford remarked, `` I agree with the Supreme Courts ruling how did betty ford die ] in 2000, the Almanac! The political wife Betty Ford Center the Supreme Courts ruling political wife Betty Ford `` distinguished herself her. [ 107 ] in 2000, the World Almanac included Ford in its of! Toward First Lady Pat Nixon Ford 's presidency admiration and friendship toward First Lady Pat Nixon the Supreme Courts.! Be remembered for her support of ERA and her frank admission about being hooked tranquilizers! Advocate of the feminist movement after the midterm elections 3 ] [ 5 ] Warren was advocate! 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In April 1974, she made her first official solo trip as second lady when she spent two-days visiting the states of Georgia and Tennessee to help in publicizing the "ARTRAIN", which was a traveling exhibit of art, visual displays, and performance pieces housed in six railway cars, and which was to travel through small towns across the southern United States. It was just that they were accustomed to the more formal atmosphere prevailing under the Nixons. However, even after this, Ford continued with her planned campaign schedule. Gerald Ford was in the middle of his campaign for the U.S. House of Representatives. White House photographer David Hume Kennerly took a photo of her on the table. "[21][24] The Fords had planned to make a diplomatic trip to European nations after the midterm elections. [74] A Ford family friend said that President Ford "about fell off his chair" when he saw the photo for the first time. (He had played center for Michigan.) Betty Ford stands in the lower-left corner of this image, After leaving the White House in 1977, Ford continued to lead an active public life. The political wife Betty Ford passed away at age 93, astounding. Poor health and increasing frailty due to operations in August 2006 and April 2007 for blood clots in her legs caused her to largely curtail her public life. Betty" (2013). [61], As First Lady, Ford was an advocate of the arts. [47] She placed first in 1975. [87], In 1982, after recovering from her own addictions, Ford established the Betty Ford Center (initially called the Betty Ford Clinic) in Rancho Mirage, California, for the treatment of chemical dependency,[88] including treating the children of alcoholics. [100], In 1985, Ford received the Award for Greatest Public Service Benefiting the Disadvantaged, an annual award given by the Jefferson Awards. "[91], Ford continued to be an active leader and activist of the feminist movement after the Ford administration. [40] In 1977, the World Almanac included Ford in its ranking of the 25 most-influential American women. Betty Ford will be remembered for her support of ERA and her frank admission about being hooked on tranquilizers and alcohol. [3][12] With her husband assuming the office of vice president, Ford became the second lady of the United States. [114] In terms of cumulative assessment, Ford has been ranked: The 2008 Siena Research Institute survey ranked Ford the 5th-highest of the twenty 20th and 21st century First Ladies. In 1981, Eleanor Smeal, the National Organization for Women's president, announced Ford's appointment to be the co-chair, with Alan Alda, of the ERA Countdown Campaign. [3], Despite the brevity of her husband's presidency (roughly two and a half years), he hosted 33 state dinners, the fifth most state dinners of any United States president. [3][19] Ford's health problems and the stress of her husband's career (which saw him frequently away from their household) compounded, particularly after her husband's career became even more demanding after he became House minority leader in January 1965. She hadnt, she said: No one ever bothered to ask., Some months after her divorce, she began dating Gerald R. Ford, a lawyer with political ambitions and a man she described as probably the most eligible bachelor in Grand Rapids. He proposed in February 1948. [3][5][12] They married on October 15, 1948, at Grace Episcopal Church in Grand Rapids. LR: Nancy Reagan, Ladybird Johnson , Hillary Clinton, Rosalyn Carter, Ford, Barbara Bush, The Fords post for a photograph with three other U.S. first couples (George H. W. and Barbara Bush, Bill and Hillary Clinton, Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter) during at the 2000 White House Historical Association Dinner, Ford attends a National Press Club event in 2001, The Fords with President George W. Bush and First Lady Laura Bush at the White House in 2003 at a celebration President Ford's 90th birthday, Ford and her husband at a June 2005 Gerald R. Ford Foundation dinner, Betty Ford with her husband and President George W. Bush on April 23, 2006, Ford leans over President Ford's coffin during memorial services for him held December 30, 2006 in the United States Capitol rotunda as part of the his state funeral, Ford being escorted by Army Major General Guy C. Swan III during a portion of the state funeral of her late husband, Betty Ford died of natural causes on July 8, 2011, three months after her 93rd birthday, at Eisenhower Medical Center in Rancho Mirage. [83][84], Ford had suffered from a dependency on prescription medication and from alcoholism prior even to her husband's presidency. She disclosed her alcoholism through a statement that a family spokesman read on her behalf at a press conference (at which Ford was not herself present) held outside of the hospital. Ford also publicly expressed admiration and friendship toward First Lady Pat Nixon. But through an accident of history, I had become interesting to people., Betty Ford, Former First Lady, Dies at 93, https://www.nytimes.com/2011/07/09/us/politics/betty-ford-dies.html. John Robert Greene.