The Bush family: the legacy of George and Barbara Bush

Barbara Pierce met George H.W. Bush when she was just 16 and he was 17. An immediate romance sprang between the two and they were engaged a year and a half later, just before George joined the armed forces. The two were married for an astonishing 73 years until Barbara passed in April of this year.

Now, with the passing of George H.W. on Nov. 30, the former president and first lady leave behind the fruits of this marriage: children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren who promise to carry on their lasting legacy.

This brought me such comfort this morning. I had the opportunity to talk with my grandpa about the afterlife. This is what he said: He answered without any hesitation. “Yes, I think about it. I used to be afraid. I used to be scared of dying. I used to worry about death. But now in some ways I look forward to it.” And I started crying. I managed to choke out, “Well, why? What do you look forward to?” And he said, “Well, when I die, I’m going to be reunited with these people that I’ve lost.” And I asked who he hoped to see. He replied, I hope I see Robin, and I hope I see my mom. I haven’t yet figured it out if it will be Robin as the three year old that she was, this kind of chubby, vivacious child or if she’ll come as a middle-aged woman, an older woman. And then he said, “I hope she’s the three-year-old.” Robin was the daughter this giant of a man lost years before to leukemia. The little girl he held tightly: who spoke the phrase I have heard Gampy repeat for my entire life, forever knitting Robin’s voice into the tightly woven fabric of our family: “I love you more than tongue can tell.”

A post shared by jennabhager (@jennabhager) on Dec 1, 2018 at 4:21am PST

THEIR CHILDREN

George Walker Bush

George W. is the eldest son of George and Barbara Bush. He was born on July 6, 1946, in New Haven, Connecticut while his father was attending Yale University. He married future first lady Laura Welch in 1977 and later co-owned the Texas Rangers baseball team. George W. then defeated Ann Richards in the 1994 Texas gubernatorial election.

At the age of 54, George W. followed in his father’s footsteps by becoming the 43rd president of the United States. It was only the second time in American history that a president’s son went on to the White House (the first time was with John Adams and John Quincy Adams). He served two terms as president before being succeeded by Barack Obama.

Pauline (Robin) Robinson Bush

George and Barbara’s parenthood is not without tragedy. Robin was the first daughter among the Bush children, born in 1949. At just three-years-old, Robin sadly passed away from leukemia, leaving a gaping hole in the Bush family.

In a letter Bush Sr. wrote during the summer of 1958, four years after his daughter’s death, the grieving father said "But she is still with us. We need her and yet we have her. We can’t touch her and yet we can feel her. We hope she’ll stay in our house for a long, long time. Love, Pop."

Jeb Ellis Bush

Jeb is also an American politician, taking after his father and older brother. Born on Feb. 11, 1953, in Midland, Texas, Jeb held his first government post in 1987 and 1988, serving as Florida’s Secretary of Commerce. He went on to serve as Florida’s governor from 1998 to 2007. In 2015, Jeb announced his run for the U.S. presidency but left the race in Feb. 2016.

Neil Mallon Bush

Neil is the third son of George and Barbara Bush. Born on Jan. 22, 1955 in Midland, Texas, Neil helped with each of his father’s campaigns. In 2010, Neil became the founding chairman of TX Oil, an international energy firm focused on exploration in former Soviet republics.

Jeb, Neil, Marvin, Doro, and I are saddened to announce that after 94 remarkable years, our dear Dad has died. George H. W. Bush was a man of the highest character and the best dad a son or daughter could ask for. The entire Bush family is deeply grateful for 41’s life and love, for the compassion of those who have cared and prayed for Dad, and for the condolences of our friends and fellow citizens.

A post shared by George W. Bush (@georgewbush) on Nov 30, 2018 at 9:13pm PST

Marvin Pierce Bush

The youngest son of Barbara and George, Marvin was born on Oct. 22, 1956, and is an investment manager. He has worked as director of HCC Insurance Holdings, a publicly traded insurance company. While his brother was president, Marvin would go to the White House to watch sports but was never interested in politics like George and Jeb were.

Dorothy Bush Koch

Dorothy is George and Barbara’s only living daughter and youngest child, born in 1959. She served as co-chair for the Barbara Bush Foundation for Family Literacy and was also a fundraiser for her brother’s presidential campaigns.

In 1992, she married Robert P. Koch in a marriage that many coined as a “Romeo and Juliet” match. Robert was a top aide for House Majority Leader Richard Gephardt, a frequent critic of Dorothy’s father. Their wedding was at Camp David.

For more on the passing of George H.W. Bush, see the video below: