Barbara Bush To Be Buried Next to Daughter Who Passed Away at Age 3
The nation is still grieving the loss of beloved former first lady Barbara Bush, who passed away on April 17, 2018.
It has been announced that she will be buried next to her daughter, Pauline Robinson “Robin” Bush who died when she was only 3 years old.
Robin was born in December of 1949. When she turned 3, her energy began to drain. Concerned, Barbara called a doctor thinking her daughter just had spring fever.
Noticing the bruises on her body, the doctor took a sample of blood and sent the family home while it was being tested. The results came back and told a heartbreaking story.
Robin had Leukemia.
At that time, survival rates of cancer patients were nearly nonexistent. The doctor told the family to just enjoy the rest of their time with her. Barbara remembered her saying, “My advice is to take her home, love her. In about two weeks, she’ll be gone.”
Barbara and George decided that they would do everything within their power to save their daughter. They flew across the country to a hospital that was willing to treat children with cancer. This was about ten years before St. Jude Children’s Hospital was founded.
They performed painful bone marrow tests, blood transfusions, and put her through chemotherapy. Despite the attempts of the hospital, Robin passed away seven months later, just before her 4th birthday.
“I was combing her hair and holding her hand. I saw that little body, I saw her spirit go,” Barbara recalled.
Robin’s body was donated for research after her death. In an interview with her granddaughter, Barbara said, “It made [George] and me feel that something good is coming out of this precious little life. And today, almost nobody dies of leukemia.”
Their grief turned to giving as the Bush family became active in the Leukemia Society of America. Barbara even visited St. Jude Children’s Hospital in 1991.
Barbara said she stopped grieving her daughter a while ago, describing her as a “joy” and “an angel.”
“Because of Robin, George and I love every living human more,” she said.
Now that Barbara has passed away, she will be buried near the George H.W. Bush Library at Texas A&M. She will be laid to rest next to Robin.
Her invitation-only funeral will be held on Saturday, April 21 at St. Martin’s Episcopal Church in Houston, Texas.
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