Jenna Bush Hager and Barbara Bush said they are “heartbroken” following the Saturday death of their grandfather, former president George H.W. Bush.
“I think we’re both heartbroken,” said Barbara, who is the 37-year-old twin sister of Jenna. “We of course expected our grandfather to pass away soon. I mean, he’s 94. And yet it came as such a shock … And yet, I think, I also get a lot of joy knowing that he’s with our grandmother now.”
“We knew, most likely, this was going to be his last summer. We all knew that,” Jenna said during a pre-taped interview on NBC, which aired Wednesday morning.
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Barbara married Craig Coyne in at the Bush family’s summer home in Kennebunkport, Maine, in October. The wedding was planned quickly in order to make sure the man they described as the “center” of the family could be present.
“We decided to get married very quickly because we wanted to make sure my grandfather could be with us. He got dressed early and came downstairs early before the wedding, so that he could see me in my wedding dress before we got married. One of the last things he said to me was that I’ve never looked so beautiful,” she recalled.
The two women lived in the White House for eight years while their father, George. W. Bush, was president from 2001 to 2009.
George W. Bush will give the eulogy at his father’s funeral at Washington National Cathedral Wednesday.
Jenna and Barbara said he has been preparing emotionally for his remarks.
“I think he also wants to make sure he can get through it himself without, you know, he lost his father and is also devastated,” said Barbara. “So to be able to get through the eulogy — without breaking down — is something else he’s working on.”
