how did betty ford die

Betty Ford was portrayed as an ideal patient within a success narrative that presented the key sequences of her breast cancer diagnosis and treatment in a progressive, linear fashion that inspired optimism. YouTube. She knew the name from his . Elizabeth Anne "Betty" Bloomer Ford was the widow of former United States President Gerald R. Ford and served as the First Lady of the United States from 1974 to 1977. Gerald Ford: Gerald Ford was president of the United States between 1974 and 1977. July 8, 2011 — -- Betty Ford, wife of former President Gerald Ford and the founder of the Betty Ford Center for substance abuse and addiction, has died at age 93. She served as the honorary president of the National Lupus Foundation, regarding lupus as a disease which impacted women, yet received minimal public attention. [3], On March 12, 1974, the Fords hosted a state dinner for King Hussein of Jordan after president Nixon, with a week's notice, asked Vice President Ford to take over for him in hosting the already-scheduled state dinner. She had held the top post at the center since its founding. The statement also declared, "I expect this treatment and fellowship to be a solution for my problems. The series is all set to release on the OTT platform on the 9th of May. During her time in the White House, she also admitted to taking Valium. The Fords' children often also attended the dinners they hosted. First Lady Betty Ford held her first official press conference in the State Dining Room on September 4, 1974. Betty Ford passed away in June 2011 at the age of 93. [5], In 1936, after graduating from high school, Bloomer proposed continuing her study of dance in New York City, but her mother refused on account of the relatively recent loss of her husband. On Aug. 9, 1974, Nixon stepped down following the Watergate scandal. [3][19] Ford also posed for newspaper publicity photographs and was a clothing model for charity fashion shows, after a Republican had urged her to do so since they felt that Democratic Party spouses had far outnumbered Republican spouses in such publicity-generating activity. For years after leaving the White House, Ford continued to enjoy great influence and popularity, continuing to rank in the top-ten of Gallup's annual most admired woman poll every year through 1991. It was just that they were accustomed to the more formal atmosphere prevailing under the Nixons. During and after her years in the White House, 1974 to 1977, Mrs. Ford won . [3][19] Ford registered herself at the hospital on April 11, 1978. At 8:49 p.m. local time, President Ford's wife of 58 years, Betty Ford, issued a statement that confirmed his death: "My family joins me in sharing the difficult news that Gerald Ford, our beloved husband, father, grandfather . The cause given for her death was "natural. As a young girl, Betty took up dancing, which quickly became her passion. Helping others overcome addiction became her chief cause. Through the work she did at the Betty Ford Center, Ford recognized the link between drug abuse and AIDS. They married in 1948, two weeks before he was elected to his first term in Congress. Ford, a Rancho Mirage resident who died in July 2011, had told The Desert Sun that she opposed the idea of national expansion. She visited states, including Illinois, where ratification was believed to have the most realistic chance of passing. Ford's failure to conduct a solo trip is not all that extraordinary, however. Betty underwent a radical mastectomy at Bethesda Naval Hospital and inadvertently destigmatized breast cancer by addressing her illness publicly during a White House press conference. A month after moving into the White House, Betty Ford was diagnosed with breast cancer and had a mastectomy. [3][21] Her candor on this trip received a positive reception by the news media..[21] Among those she met on the two-day trip was Georgia Governor Jimmy Carter and his wife Rosalynn Carter. If she could help women win full equal rights with men under the U.S. Constitution, Betty Ford wanted to give it her all. That same year, People named Ford one of the three most intriguing people in America. Her mother remarried, to family friend and neighbor Arthur Meigs Godwin, and Bloomer lived with them. After leaving the White House, Betty Ford publicly acknowledged her addiction to alcohol and painkillers. Hortense and William married on November 9, 1904, in Chicago. [3][24] Ford was the only individual in attendance at the funeral not directly ingrained in the civil rights movement, with the exception of Georgia Governor Jimmy Carter. [16][100] Ford left $500,000 to the Betty Ford Center. She continued to serve as Chairman-Emeritus of the Betty Ford Center and enjoyed her role as grandmother and great-grandmother to her still-growing family. [76] In her remarks, Mrs. Cheney noted that July 14 would have been Gerald Ford's 98th birthday. She was working in a fashion job in Grand Rapids where Gerald lived. Ford was born Elizabeth Anne Bloomer in 1918 in Chicago, Illinois, the third child and only daughter of Hortense (ne Neahr; 1884 1948) and William Stephenson Bloomer Sr. (1874 1934), who was a traveling salesman for Royal Rubber Co.[3] She was called Betty as a child. In fact, when Mrs . [80] In November 1977, Ford appeared at the opening session of the National Women's Conference in Houston, Texas. Her cause of death was not immediately clear. Fellow first lady Nancy Reagan also was "deeply saddened" by the news. Best known for her leadership in the founding of the Betty Ford Clinic in California to treat addiction. Surveys of historians conducted by the Siena College Research Institute have shown that historians regard Ford to be among the best and most courageous American first ladies. ", President Carter and his wife Rosalynn, who succeeded the Fords in the White House, recalled "a close personal friend and our frequent partner in bipartisan efforts to improve mental health and substance abuse care in our nation. This response proved effective in killing the speculation that she was covering-up her past, and earned her some admiration in the media. Soon after leaving office, she raised awareness of addiction when she sought help for and publicly disclosed her long-running struggle with alcoholism and substance abuse. [3], Between Labor Day and election day, for the general election campaign, Ford conducted multi-stop speaking tours, during which she visited western states (including California, Colorado, Texas, and Utah) as well was northern midwest states including Illinois, Michigan, and Wisconsin. The union did not last, and they divorced amicably several years later. ", President George H.W. Former first lady Betty Ford has died at the age of 93. Betty Ford, whose husband, Gerald, died in December 2006, had undergone surgery for an undisclosed ailment in April 2007. [35] The New York News Service wrote that Ford was, "constitutionally incapable of uttering 'no comment' or otherwise fudging an answer.". [102] After the service, Betty Ford was buried next to her husband on the museum grounds. During the general election, her busy campaign activity saw the reigniting of her pinched nerve. [3], The heavy campaigning placed a strain on Ford's health. [85], 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,[86] including treating the children of alcoholics. Gerald R. Ford, the nation's 38th president, died on this day in 2006. [3][5], Bloomer's mother was opposed to her pursuing a career in dance and insisted that she return home, and, as a compromise, they agreed that Bloomer would return home for six months and, if she still wanted to return to New York City at the end of that time, her mother would not protest further. The American public ranked Ford as the eighth-greatest among these first ladies. Betty" (2013). John Robert Greene. By the time Betty Ford became first lady in August 1974the month her husband, Gerald Ford, succeeded Richard Nixon the former dancer had already been taking prescription pills for years to. By her second birthday, however, she was living in Grand Rapids, Michigan, the city she always considered her home. She worked a production line for a frozen food company in Fulton, New York. [19][61] In a 1975 interview with the news program 60 Minutes, Ford called Roe v. Wade a "great, great decision". Ford has consistently ranked among the top-nine most highly assessed first ladies in these surveys. [117], Second Lady of the United States (19731974), First Lady of the United States (19741977), Ranking in Gallup's annual poll of "Most Admired Women", Recovery from alcoholism and prescription drug addiction, Steinhauer, Jennifer (December 31, 2006). But, before . [12] Ford felt an obligation to attend her husband's testimony at his confirmation hearings. Everyone recognizes the namethanks in large part to the Betty Ford Clinic she co-founded in 1982 . Ford did indirectly indicate her willingness to step into the role of first lady by affirming that she would make any sacrifices required for her husband to carry out his constitutional obligations, but also opined that it would be traumatic if the nation had to endure a president being forced from office. She was 99. 'Not at all,' he replied. Nor did she address her relationship with alcohol, which she, at the time, believed was typical consumption. [37][33] In January 1976, the editors of the New York News Service wrote that Ford was, "one of the most charming and popular First Ladies ever to occupy the White House". Betty Ford, the first lady of the United States from 1974 to 1977, died at the age of 93. [3] The broadcast of the interview saw strong interest from the public. The first instance of a first lady conducting one had been Eleanor Roosevelt in 1942. And I loved pills. The official cause of death was listed as carbon monoxide poisoning despite the garage door being open, but Betty acknowledged later in her life that her father very likely died by suicide. In 1978, the Ford family staged an intervention, and forced Betty to confront her addition to alcohol and pain pills. "First Ladies and the Cultural Everywoman Ideal: Gender Performance and Representation. She received an award from Parsons The New School for Design in recognition of her style. Thereafter, Mrs. Ford's daily greetings were verbally reciprocated.". She studied dance at the Calla Travis Dance Studio, graduating in 1935. [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. LOS ANGELES, California -- Actress Betty White passed away in her sleep on Friday, her agent has confirmed to ABC News. [19] In her 1987 memoir she reflected on these addictions, writing, "I liked alcohol, it made me feel warm. She was never more blunt and open than in 1978 when she revealed to the world her struggle to recover from her addiction to alcohol and prescription drugs. She made countless contributions to our country, and we especially appreciate her courage in calling attention to breast cancer and substance abuse. "[3], At the time her husband assumed the presidency, reporters speculated on what kind of first lady Ford would be, as they thought her predecessor, Pat Nixon, as noted by one reporter, to be the "most disciplined, composed first lady in history. [22] Two days later, on October 12, 1973, President Richard Nixon nominated Gerald Ford to serve as vice president. Betty Ford: Abortion is NOT a Partisan Issue - WCLA - Choice Matters Coming of age when Betty Ford and her husband found themselves accidental occupants of the White House, all I knew of Betty Ford was that she had big hair, and, subsequently, breast cancer and addiction issues. Warters, T. Alissa. When they returned to Grand Rapids, she worked again at Herpolsheimer's, this time as the fashion coordinator. She died in her sleep, in her. Take a look at images from Betty Ford's years in the White House. Elizabeth "Betty" Bloomer was born on April 8, 1918, in Chicago, Illinois, and spent most of her childhood in Grand Rapids, Michigan. ", President George W. Bush said he and his wife Laura "admired her as a first lady and valued her as a friend. Because she suffered, there will be more healing. [96], On November 18, 1991, she was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom by President George H. W. Your cross will be his work. [83] The fact that Ford had, for years, been given tranquilizers to treat a pinched nerve in her neck, was public knowledge as far back as her time as second lady. Much of this progress began in the 1970s through the voice and advocacy of Betty Ford. The November 12, 1974 state dinner for Austrian Chancellor Bruno Kreisky saw the first instance in which a wine from the Fords' home state of Michigan was served at a White House state dinner, with wine from the Tabor Hill Winery being served. By February 1948 the couple was engaged to be married. [91], In 1978, the deadline for ratification of the ERA was extended from 1979 to 1982, resulting largely from a march of a hundred thousand people on Pennsylvania Avenue in Washington. "[10], 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. [25] The first of these came only a week into Ford's presidency, hosting King Hussein of Jordan on August 16, 1974. [7][34][37] However, polling would show that her comments were accepted by many Americans. [20] Such talk was due to Gerald Ford, following the Republican Party's failure to win a majority in the 1972 United States House of Representatives elections, seeing it as unlikely that he would ever fulfill his ambition of becoming speaker of the House. Betty White's cause of death has been revealed.. Turn on desktop notifications for breaking stories about interest? Ford also became involved in causes related to HIV/AIDS. It was something the couple neither expected or wanted, Betty Ford recalled in her memoirs. Ford, who died Friday at age 93, was not intimidated by the public spotlight, and used her position to passionately promote causes important to her. [115] That same year, Ford received the Golden Plate Award of the American Academy of Achievement, presented by her husband, President Gerald Ford, an Academy Awards Council member. [7] Weeks later, when the Fords moved from their Virginia residence into the White House[3] their king size bed was photographed being moved into the White House, which prompted Betty to quip that they had been outed for breaking the tradition of first couples keeping separate bedrooms in the White House. She suffered from severe arthritic pain in her neck and muscle spasms. [3][97] In 1999, she and President Ford were jointly awarded Congressional Gold Medals. In contrast, there was tremendous organic excitement for Betty Ford among supporters of the campaign. [15], Barbara Bush, a later first lady, opined that Ford, after discovering she was dependent on drugs, "transformed her pain into something great for the common good. Bette Ford came to New York City from a small town outside of Pittsburgh, PA, with big dreams . [98] That same year, she and President Ford were given a Golden Palm Star on the Palm Springs Walk of Stars. [53] In 1977, the year her husband left office, she placed fourth. Betty Ford was a former First Lady of the United States (August 9th, 1974 - January 20th, 1977). [5] After he recovered, they were divorced on September 22, 1947. [99] On May 8, 2003, Ford received the Woodrow Wilson Award in Los Angeles for her public service, awarded by the Woodrow Wilson Center of the Smithsonian Institution. This led her to seek psychiatric assistance. "We were honored to host President and Mrs. Ford at the White House in 1998 when they received the Congressional Gold Medal for their dedication and service to our nation," the Clintons wrote. [3] Gerald Ford was confirmed as vice president by the United States Congress on December 6, 1973, and Gerald Ford took the oath of office before a joint session of the United States Congress, placing his hand upon a bible which Betty Ford held. Ford made the decision that year to erect a tent in the White House Rose Garden to host dinners outside. Her coverage minimized the complexity of breast cancer as a disease and ignored the debates surrounding best treatment practices. She also was completely unpretentious. Article continues below advertisement. [110], Ford's life is the focus of the 1987 ABC biographical television film The Betty Ford Story, which has a story adapted from her memoir The Times of My Life. She was also awarded the Congressional Gold Medal as a co-recipient with President Ford in 1998. "[28] Ford ultimately became a popular and impactful first lady. ", Gould, Lewis L. "Modern first ladies in historical perspective. Reagan had contrasting views on issues such as drug experimentation by teenagers and the Equal Rights Amendment (which she opposed passing). Betty Ford. She further taught ballroom dancing lessons for children with visual impairment and hearing loss and gave weekly dance lessons to African American children. "Ford and Ford" in Scott Kaufman, ed. In 2005, Ford relinquished her chair of the center's board of directors to her daughter Susan. Ford died Friday at the Eisenhower Medical Center in Rancho Mirage, Calif., ABC News has learned. Following her White House years, she continued to lobby for the ERA and remained active in the feminist movement. However, she abused these prescriptions, regularly taking many more pills than prescribed. [71] As previously mentioned, the Fords had hosted a state dinner for King Hussein months earlier, during Gerald Ford's vice presidency, on March 12, 1974, after president Nixon asked then-Vice President Ford to take over for him in hosting a planned dinner for the King. Ford also became famous as a pioneer in the battle against substance abuse. [24] With her husband, as vice president, tasked with heavily campaigning on behalf of his party for the 1974 midterm elections, Ford occasionally hit the campaign trail herself. She successfully lobbied her husband to award the Presidential Medal of Freedom to choreographer and dancer Martha Graham in 1976. "[19], Ford avidly supported the proposed Equal Rights Amendment. . Her mother's actions in the wake of her father's passing are said to have been formative for her views in support of equal pay and gender equality. "[34] Ford was open about the benefits of psychiatric treatment, and spoke understandingly about marijuana use and premarital sex. "I just think it's important to say how easy it is to slip into a dependency on pills or alcohol, and how hard it is to admit that dependency.". The week she entered rehab, Ford disclosed her addiction to prescription medication. However, even after this, Ford continued with her planned campaign schedule. Actress Betty White died after suffering a stroke six days prior, according to her death certificate. I did not know at the time what was going on. She was also involved in her husband's political career by fulfilling the commitments expected of congressional spouses to help elevate her husband's regard among his House colleagues. Ford would ultimately develop an addiction to prescription medication (and would ultimately confront and recover from this addiction in 1978). You may not think that creating a humane, healing environment for people with addiction is a remarkable concept. [3], Ford had an extremely busy schedule by July 1974. By not being the "political wife" of self-sacrificing legend, she both reflected and advanced public views about women in politics.

Dbpower Jump Starter Flashing Red And Green, Frankie Gaye Wife Irene Duncan, Articles H