George H.W. Bush releases statement on outpouring of love for Barbara Bush

Former President George H.W. Bush says he's always known and would tease his wife that she was "the most beloved woman in the world" and that he "had a complex about that fact."

In a statement released by Bush family spokesperson Jim McGrath, the 41st president of the U.S. says the outpouring of love and friendship to Barbara Bush following her death Tuesday "is lifting us all up."

He also referred Wednesday to the former first lady as "The Enforcer," a term of endearment bestowed by her family.

Bush said he has faith his wife "is in heaven, and we know life will go on — as she would have it."

He added: "So cross the Bushes off your worry list."

The wife and mother of U.S. presidents died Tuesday at her home in Houston at age 92.

Former president George W. Bush said his mother did not fear death because she believed in an afterlife and that she would be "wonderfully received in the arms of a loving God."

The former president appeared Wednesday with his wife, Laura Bush, on the Fox Business Network. He said his mother "was warm and wonderful, until you got out of line."

George W. Bush said that during a recent visit with his mother, she told her doctor that her son "is the way he is" because she "drank and smoked when [she] was pregnant with him."

Public celebration, private funeral

Laura Bush said her mother-in-law had long supported literacy campaigns and believed "if everyone could read and write, a lot of problems would be solved."

The funeral will be held at St. Martin's Episcopal Church in Houston, which she and her husband regularly attended. Barricades were erected Wednesday, and police were stationed outside a funeral home near the church. The church will host a public viewing Friday. Saturday's funeral will be by invitation only.

An "uplifting celebration" of Barbara Bush's life will be held Thursday evening outside Houston City Hall. City officials encouraged people to wear blue, her favourite colour, along with pearls, which became her signature neckwear jewelry. City hall was being bathed in blue lights in her honour.

The current president's wife will attend the funeral ceremony Saturday, according to her spokesperson, Stephanie Grisham.

In a statement following Bush's death Tuesday, Melania Trump praised the 92-year-old for putting her "family and country above all else."

Remembered for devotion, service

The White House said U.S. flags at the president's home and private golf club in Florida have been lowered to half-staff in honour of Bush.

Meanwhile, condolences continued to flow from around the world on Wednesday, including from Britain and Russia.

The Queen and British Ambassador Kim Darroch have sent messages of condolences to the Bush family.

British Embassy spokesperson Andrew Overton said Darroch also issued a statement that said the U.K. government is "deeply saddened" by Bush's death.

Darroch said she will be "remembered for her care and compassion for her fellow Americans, for her unfailing efforts to promote literacy, and for her devotion to her family. A great orator, widely admired and dedicated to public service, she will be dearly missed."

In a statement of condolence, former Russian leader and Bush counterpart Mikhail Gorbachev said: "I am deeply saddened by the death of Barbara, and on this day I remember everything was connected with us, our numerous meetings. Barbara did a lot to build trust and friendship between us. She immediately developed a warm relationship with Raisa, they communicated easily and at ease."

Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov told reporters on Wednesday that Russia President Vladimir Putin sent a telegram to the former president offering his condolences.

In Kuwait, the Arab nation that has long celebrated George H.W. Bush for securing its freedom from Iraqi occupation in the 1991 Gulf War, the state-run news agency KUNA reported that Kuwaiti leader Sheikh Sabah Al Ahmad Al Sabah sent letters of condolence to the Bush family. Barbara Bush visited Kuwait in 1993 and 2001, and was warmly received by dignitaries and Kuwaiti women.

On Tuesday, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said Barbara Bush had left "a legacy of dignity, grace, service and devotion to family."

Barbara Bush, rock of the Bush family, dead at 92

7 years ago

Duration 3:17

Barbara Bush, a former U.S. first lady and rock of the Bush family, has died at the age of 92. The National takes a look at Bush's life and her legacy.