Mrs. Nixon's quiet strength and steadfastness in the face of a tumultuous life in the public eye had endeared her to millions of Americans. Readers of Good Housekeeping magazine chose her as one of the most admired women in America more than 20 times - most of them after she had left the White House.
Presidents Reagan and Ford and their wives, members of Congress, and a host of other longtime friends joined President Nixon and his family to pay respects and say goodbye to Pat Nixon in the gardens outside the Richard Nixon Library and Birthplace.
Mourners were shocked and moved by the former President's abject grief at the loss of his beloved Pat, and some said, "he won't last a year." He died 10 months later.
Pat Nixon's funeral is held by the reflecting pool at the Richard Nixon Library.
Richard Nixon, the Reverend Billy Graham, Tricia and Edward Cox, and Julie and David Eisenhower outside the Richard Nixon Library.
It was that sense of adventure which led her to become half of the Dick and Pat partnership that began in California 53 years ago and brought them to heights of fame, power, turmoil, frustration, and peace that few have experienced.
- June 26, 1993
A grief-stricken Richard Nixon listens as the funeral services for his beloved wife Pat begin.
Let me tell you about the real Pat - the Pat I knew and loved for over half a century. She was beautiful and intelligent and wise. She loved her family. She loved people. Not just the American people, but the thousands of people she met in our travels to Asia, Africa, Latin America, and Europe over the past 40 years. She loved a good time. She knew how to make us laugh. She always brought sunshine into a room.
- June 26, 1993
Richard Nixon and his family at Pat Nixon's funeral. Former Presidents Reagan and Ford and their First Ladles were there. Billy Graham conducted the service.
