+ A
A -
AFP
Houston
Past presidents, family and friends came together Saturday to bid a tearful farewell to Barbara Bush, the matriarch of one of America's most prominent political dynasties, at a funeral service in Texas.
Bush, who died Tuesday aged 92, was wife to the 41st US president and mother to the 43rd. She was remembered for her friendship, her wit and her strength. The invitation-only service at St Martin's Episcopal Church in Houston was attended by four former presidents: George HW Bush -- Barbara's husband of 73 years -- their son George W. Bush, Bill Clinton and Barack Obama, as well as other former senior officials.
First Lady Melania Trump attended but her husband President Donald Trump did not, with the White House saying his decision to stay in Washington was taken"to avoid disruptions due to added security."
"My thoughts and prayers are with the entire Bush family,"Trump wrote on Twitter, saying he planned to watch the funeral ceremony.
The public had the opportunity to pay their respects to Barbara Bush the previous day at a visitation the previous day.
"Barbara Bush filled our lives with laughter and joy,"her son Jeb, a former Florida governor and presidential candidate, said during the service.
"She was our teacher and role model on how to live a life of purpose and meaning,"he said.
"Mom got us through our difficult times with consistent, take-it-to-the-bank, unconditional but tough love."
Known for her trademark faux pearls -- which Jeb mentioned in his eulogy -- and tart-tongued comments about life in and out of Washington, Barbara Bush was in many ways a figure more popular among ordinary Americans than her high-flying husband and sons.
She met her husband-to-be at age 16 when she was a schoolgirl and he was a student at an elite Massachusetts preparatory school, and they married in 1945 while he was on leave from wartime service.
