George H. W. Bush, as the 41st President (1989-1993), has died on November 30, 2018. In the White House he tried to make the United States “a kinder and gentler nation” .
Bush was born in Milton, Massachusetts, on June 12, 1924. On his 18th birthday he enlisted in the armed forces. As a pilot he flew 58 combat missions during World War II. On one mission over the Pacific as a torpedo bomber pilot he was shot down by Japanese antiaircraft fire and was rescued from the water by a U. S. submarine. He was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross for bravery in action.
In January 1945 he married Barbara Pierce. They had six children– George, Robin (who died as a child), John (known as Jeb), Neil, Marvin, and Dorothy. They were married for 73 years. Barbara died on April 17, 2018.
He studied at Yale University and afterwards Bush embarked on a career in the oil industry of West Texas.
George became interested in public service and politics. He served two terms as a Representative to Congress from Texas. Then he was appointed to a series of high-level positions: Ambassador to the United Nations, Chairman of the Republican National Committee, Chief of the U. S. Liaison Office in the People’s Republic of China, and Director of the Central Intelligence Agency. He was Vice-President under Ronald Regan. In 1988 Bush won the Republican nomination for President and, with Senator Dan Quayle of Indiana as his running mate.
Bush suffered from vascular parkinsonism, a type of Parkinson's disease. Bush died on November 30, 2018, aged 94, at his home in Houston.
He was a faithful Christian Episcopalian.
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