[89] Ford continued to be an outspoken supporter of equal pay for women, breast cancer awareness, and the ERA throughout her life. See full answer below. [3][19] Ford registered herself at the hospital on April 11, 1978. This prospect elated Ford. All the way there I was telling myself how it would not change anything. In 2005, Ford relinquished her chair of the center's board of directors to her daughter Susan. Betty Ford passed away in June 2011 at the age of 93. As it turns out, Betty Ford did send a letter to Michelle Obama. In fact, when Mrs . She became an advocate for breast cancer research and early detection. [84] When she attended the 1992 Republican National Convention, Ford wore an AIDS ribbon pin. [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. [19], In 1977, the Fords moved to Rancho Mirage, California. After leaving. You see, Betty (played on The First Lady by Michelle Pfeiffer and Kristine Froseth) was married to William before she wed former President Gerald Ford (Aaron Eckhart). He was a Bristol, Tennessee, native who had a 40-year career as a music . Ford's recent predecessor Lady Bird Johnson was among other first ladies that did not conduct solo trips abroad. ", Tobin, Leesa E. "Betty Ford as first lady: A woman for women.". ", President George H.W. When they returned to Grand Rapids, she worked again at Herpolsheimer's, this time as the fashion coordinator. The Fords' children often also attended the dinners they hosted. She also co-authored with Chris Chase a book about her treatment, Betty: A Glad Awakening (1987). [33] On June 30, 1976, Ford attended the opening of "Remember the Ladies", a Revolutionary War-era women's exhibit. develop an addiction to prescription medication, 1974 United States House of Representatives election, 1972 United States House of Representatives elections, joint session of the United States Congress, Ford filmed an interview with the television news program, National Commission on the Observance of International Women's Year, secretary of Housing and Urban Development, Prime Minister of the Republic of Vietnam, List of state dinners in the United States, wine from the Fords' home state of Michigan, discrimination in the United States military, List of breast cancer patients according to occupation, List of first ladies of the United States, Gerald R. Ford Presidential Library and Museum, "Betty Ford Dies at Age 93; A Look Back on the Former First Lady", "Betty Ford, Again Putting On a Brave Face", "Gerald R. Ford Presidential Library and Museum", "The 38th First Lady: not a robot at all", "Betty Ford, Former First Lady, Dies at 93", "Betty's life changed dramatically once she became", "Friends Asking: 'Is There A New Betty Ford? [87] She served as chair of the board of directors. A mutual friend, Peg Neuman, suggested to Gerald that he should ask her out, so he called her. [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. Betty's two older brothers were Robert (d. 1971) and William Jr. After the family lived briefly in Denver, Colorado, she grew up in Grand Rapids, Michigan, where she graduated from Central High School. [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. Hortense and William married on November 9, 1904, in Chicago. [45] A Ford family friend said that he "about fell off his chair" when he saw the photo for the first time. [67] The spike in women self-examining after Ford went public with the diagnosis led to an increase in reported cases of breast cancer, a phenomenon known as the "Betty Ford blip". [103], Only a part of Betty Ford's legacy will be that of her role as first lady. [80] In November 1977, Ford appeared at the opening session of the National Women's Conference in Houston, Texas. "In terms of the White House atmosphere, there's no doubt that Mrs. Ford wanted to, in her own words, let open the windows," said Richard Norton Smith, a presidential historian and one of the eulogists at the funeral for President Ford. [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. We were proud to call her a friend.". Ford made the decision that year to erect a tent in the White House Rose Garden to host dinners outside. . I think its time to bring abortion out of the backwoods and put it in the hospitals, where it belongs. Disregarding criticism to her stance, Ford would remark, Maybe I shouldnt have said it, but I couldnt lie. In 1964, a pinched nerve on the left side of Ford's neck sent her to the hospital for two weeks. [16], The Fords lived in Washington, D.C. after his election, until the spring of 1955, when the Fords moved into a house they constructed in the D.C. suburb of Alexandria, Virginia. Thus, Michelle Obama did, in fact, receive a letter from Betty Ford soon after she moved into the White House. She was married to Gerald Ford for 58 years. [27], In June 1974, Ford represented the Nixon administration by attending the funeral of Alberta Williams King, the assassinated mother of the late civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr. Other Nixon administration official figures did not attend, continuing with other obligations. President Obama noted how Betty Ford "distinguished herself through her courage and compassion. This is my problem". [3] As a mother, Ford never spanked or hit her children, believing that there were better, more constructive ways to deal with discipline and punishment. [3][5], In 1942, Elizabeth Bloomer married William G. Warren,[5][4] whom she had known since she was 12. The President outlined his criteria for the post: quality, confirmability, ageso that the nominee could be there for a whilebreadth on the Court so the Court did not have eight people of any. [68], As First Lady, Ford was an advocate of the arts. [19], During a January 1984 address in Michigan to a crowd of individuals who were in the early stages of alcohol and drug dependency treatment, Ford declared that the six years since she began her treatment for alcohol and drug abuse, "have been the best years in my life from the standpoint of feeling healthier and feeling more comfortable with myself". In 1978, the Ford family staged an intervention, and forced Betty to confront her addition to alcohol and pain pills. On April 1, 1978, her family staged an intervention which forced her to acknowledge the negative impact that her addiction was having on her health and family relationships. [5] At the time they married, Warren worked for his own father in insurance sales. She would be given prescription medication, including Valium. Article continues below advertisement. Ford assisted in fundraising for the little-known Hospital for Sick Children in Washington, D.C., whose patients were predominantly African American. [114], In 1975, when Time named "American women" as its "Time Person of the Year",[39] the magazine profiled Ford as one of eleven women selected to represent "American women". Gerald R. Ford, the nation's 38th president, died on this day in 2006. Among the nations that Ford accompanied her husband to were China, Poland, Romania, and Yugoslavia. Ford will be buried alongside her husband, the former president, at his library in Grand Rapids, Mich., she added. "My understanding is it was natural causes. [3], Spiro Agnew resigned as vice president on October 10, 1973. Read the rest of "Betty Ford, champion of women's rights . 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. Ford was also observed as upgrading her wardrobe, adding designer clothing. Ford also became involved in causes related to HIV/AIDS. Hazelden Betty Ford Foundation History. Dance developed into a passion for her, and she decided she wanted to seek a career in it. [53], In Good Housekeeping's annual readers' poll of most admired women, Ford placed second in 1974[60] and first in 1975. During her stay at the White House, her dependency on these drugs seemingly dissipated. Kalb shares a few things you may not know about the 38th . Penn State World Campus (2013). Betty Ford "became known for her openness and candor" (Northouse, 2013) and remained true to herself, she did not change who she was, or her core values because of her new position as First Lady. Betty Ford was a former First Lady of the United States (August 9th, 1974 - January 20th, 1977). Betty had a history of taking opioid painkillers for a pinched nerve since the 1960s (which is also alluded to in episode 1 of 'The First Lady'). [9][10] He died the day before his 60th birthday. Actress Betty White died after suffering a stroke six days prior, according to her death certificate. She visited states, including Illinois, where ratification was believed to have the most realistic chance of passing. After her initial anger over the intrusion in her life, Betty remained. Following her White House years, she continued to lobby for the ERA and remained active in the feminist movement. "Ford. Murray Close/SHOWTIME. [84], In 1987, Ford underwent quadruple coronary bypass surgery and recovered without complications. [35] In a 1975 interview with McCall's, Ford remarked that she was asked just about everything, except for how often she and the president had sex. [3], As she had previously been with her breast cancer diagnosis and treatment, Ford was transparent with the public about her addictions and admittance to rehab. "And if they'd asked me that I would have told them," she said, adding that her response would be, "As often as possible. [53][51] Contrarily to her, while President Ford ranked in the top-10 positions of most admired men in multiple years,[56][57][58][59] he never managed to top it. Ford was the most prominent national supporter of the project. Live July 9, 2011 -- Former first lady Betty Ford, whose candor about her own battles with substance abuse helped erase much of the stigma attached to addiction, has died. [3], Despite the brevity of her husband's presidency (roughly two and a half years), he hosted 33 state dinners, the fifth most state dinners of any United States president. On December 26, 2006, Gerald Ford, the 38th president of the United States, died at home in Rancho Mirage, California at 6:45 p.m. local time (02:45, December 27, UTC). The first instance of a first lady conducting one had been Eleanor Roosevelt in 1942. https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Betty_Ford&oldid=1133654245, Dubriwny, Tasha N. "Constructing breast cancer in the news: Betty Ford and the evolution of the breast cancer patient. Though I told myself I would just use once. [3], In November 1975, it was reported by the Associated Press that Ford's husband's advisors, who had previously worried her outspoken comments would hurt him in the 1976 presidential election, were now recognizing her popularity and desiring for her to have a greater role in the campaign. [3], The heavy campaigning placed a strain on Ford's health. Ford also became famous as a pioneer in the battle against substance abuse. [42][43][44] Gerald Ford did not know about or see the photo until 1994. [40] By late-1975, Harris found Ford to have established herself as one of America's most popular first ladies. [84], Funeral services were held in Palm Desert, California, on July 12, 2011, with more than 800 people in attendance, including former president George W. Bush, then-First Lady Michelle Obama, then-Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, herself a former First Lady, former First Ladies Rosalynn Carter, who gave a eulogy,[76] and Nancy Reagan. Betty" (2013). She desired to have a family with children and was unhappy with the frequent moves between cities she had experienced in her marriage. [33], Ford was also unapologetically pro-abortion rights. She also fundraised for No Greater Love, in appreciation of its work benefiting Children of Vietnam War MIA and POWs. 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