Former Secret Service Officer Comes Forward, Reveals Barbara Bush's Last Request to Him
The great ones never leave our memories, even when they have left this life.
It was thus that former Secret Service agent Jonathan Wackrow couldn’t help but share his recollections of former first lady Barbara Bush, who died on April 17, 2018, at the age of 92.
Wackrow wasn’t among the agents permanently assigned to protect the former first lady, but he said he had “many protective assignments” with her.
Barbara Bush’s Secret Service detail, several of whom have been been with her for decades, refuse to leave her side until she is buried. Very powerful. pic.twitter.com/zAmotYTXsC
— John P. Lopez (@LopezOnSports) April 20, 2018
What inspired that level of devotion to Bush, whose husband, George H.W. Bush, was the 41st president of the United States, serving from 1989 until 1993?
Wackrow gave some clues in an Op-Ed he wrote for CNN four days after the former first lady died, sharing two incidents he said were “testaments to her legacy, her candor and grace.”
“The first occurred when I was a new agent, assigned to work a midnight shift at the Bush family’s summer residence in Kennebunkport, Maine. I was walking in the front yard at daybreak, preparing to end my shift, when Mrs. Bush suddenly appeared,” he wrote.
“In my world, it was better to be unseen, but in this instant, I was in the former first lady’s full view with nowhere to hide. Mrs. Bush gave me the warmest smile and said, ‘Well, it is good morning for me, but it looks like you have been up all night, so I will wish you a good night’s sleep.’ Stunned, I thanked her.”
Wackrow called that encounter “one of scores of examples my fellow agents could give of the genuine admiration and respect Barbara Bush showed to the people who protected her and her family — and her recognition of the sacrifices the agents made for the presidential security operation.”
Wackrow said “the entire Bush family” shared that gratitude for the efforts of Secret Service agents.
“Many years later, I encountered Mrs. Bush again when she made a visit to the New Jersey area. This time, I was driving her limo from New York City to an appointment in New Jersey,” Wackrow wrote.
“The motorcade was small and unassuming — traits that Mrs. Bush appreciated — consisting of a few Secret Service vehicles and one unmarked New York police vehicle. But upon exiting the Holland Tunnel into New Jersey, we were joined by an assortment of New Jersey State Police vehicles and motorcycles operating with full lights and sirens.”
The effect on the former first lady was electric.
“Typically, this was not the way that the former first lady liked to travel, as it drew undue attention. However, in this instance — with her husband’s presidency behind her — she was thrilled,” Wackrow wrote.
“Taking a quick glance in the rear-view mirror, I could see an amazing smile illuminating her face as she turned to her staff in the back seat, exclaiming, ‘They remember me! We have not had this much excitement since the White House!'”
But the firmer first lady wanted to do something to share her emotions.
As the group began its return, Wackrow wrote, “Mrs. Bush leaned forward and asked the head of her protective detail if we could stop before getting back into New York City, as she wanted to thank all the police officers who, she said, ‘so warmly welcomed me to New Jersey.’
“Peering out the limo’s back windshield, I will never forget the image of Mrs. Bush shaking hands with the officers. It was a genuine moment of sincerity and unguarded kindness delivered out of the public eye, which, to me, defined this great woman,” he wrote.
Tonight, the #NJSP would like to extend thoughts and prayers to the family of former First Lady #BarbaraBush who passed away last evening.
Godspeed pic.twitter.com/HCkAOB0Z2V
— NJSP – State Police (@NJSP) April 18, 2018
Wackrow closed his remembrance of the former first lady by noting that her Secret Service code name was Tranquility.
“It exemplified her demeanor and its calming, humanizing and gentle effect on those around her,” he wrote. “She will be forever missed.”
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