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 The memorial service for the former Hollywood actress and
first lady capped two days during which thousands of mourners
filed past her flower-bedecked casket as she lay in repose at
the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library in Simi Valley, north of
Los Angeles.
She was to be buried beside her husband in a private graveside
service at the library, following a televised memorial ceremony
to be attended by numerous dignitaries and celebrities, many
from her time in the White House with Ronald Reagan as he served
as the 40th U.S. president.
Always fiercely protective of her husband, Nancy Reagan was
regarded as one of the most influential presidential spouses in
U.S. history during his Republican administration from 1981 to
1989.
She died on Sunday of congestive heart failure at age 94. Ronald
Reagan died in 2004 after a long struggle with Alzheimer's
disease. He was 93.
Her funeral was scheduled to open with music performed by a
choir from the nearby Santa Susana High School and a U.S. Marine
Corps band, followed by readings of various Bible passages,
according to the Reagan library.
The program also includes a letter from Ronald to Nancy Reagan,
to be recited by former Canadian Prime Minister Brian Mulroney,
a close friend of the couple, and eulogies by Reagan's chief of
staff, James Baker, former NBC News anchor Tom Brokaw, and two
of Reagan's children - her daughter Patti Davis and son, Ron Jr.
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Leading the roster of VIP mourners slated to attend is current first
lady Michelle Obama, joined by close relatives of all of President
Barack Obama's nine immediate predecessors, including former
President George W. Bush and his wife, Laura.
The list includes two other former first ladies - Jimmy Carter's
wife, Rosalynn, and Hillary Clinton, the former secretary of state
and now Democratic front-runner in the 2016 presidential race - as
well as Caroline Kennedy, daughter of the late President John
Kennedy. Children of Lyndon Johnson, Richard Nixon and Gerald Ford
also were expected.
Pallbearers were to include Nancy Reagan's brother, Dr. Richard
Davis and conservative political columnist George Will. Others
expected include television news veterans Katie Couric, Sam
Donaldson and Diane Sawyer, as well as such showbiz figures as
Anjelica Huston, Wayne Newton, Gary Sinise and Mr. T, who was a
supporter of Nancy Reagan's anti-drug campaign.
(Writing and additional reporting by Steve Gorman; Editing by Robert
Birsel)
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