Free Republic

FREDERICKSBURG, Texas — Lady Bird Johnson donated $300,000 only weeks before her death to a church where she had worshipped since the 1950s, parishioners said. But Johnson, who died last week at age 94, declined a proposed flower garden to be named in her honor at St. Barnabas Episcopal Church in Fredericksburg. The Rev. Richard Elwood confirmed a gift but declined further comment. Church member Kathy Schroeder said she wrote a fundraising letter in February to Johnson's daughter, Luci Baines Johnson, asking the family to consider a donation and proposing an honorary garden. On June 25, she received a letter...

PRESIDENTIAL NEWS OF THE DAY: President and Mrs. Bush spent the weekend at the White House, where they attended a T-ball game today. The President will meet with Polish President Lech Kaczynski tomorrow to discuss plans for a U.S. missile shield in Eastern Europe. Bush and Polish president to focus on missile shield Reuters WARSAW: President George W. Bush meets President Lech Kaczynski of Poland on Monday to iron out details of plans for a U.S. missile shield in Eastern Europe that is straining relations with Moscow. Underlining the growing tension between Russia and the West, President Vladimir Putin on...

AUSTIN, Texas — Lady Bird Johnson made a final trip Friday to her beloved wildflower center, where friends and family followed the former first lady's casket into a gallery for a private memorial service. About 180 people gathered at the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center, where her coffin, draped in white cloth with blue embroidery, rested in front of a large portrait of Johnson in a field of flowers. Nearby, two vases held lavender-hued bluebells, her favorite flower. "We are here to let Lady Bird go and to celebrate her glad release," said the Rev. Stephen Kinney, former rector at...

The South, angry over LBJ's civil rights efforts, was smoldering when she whistle-stopped from Virginia to New Orleans on the Lady Bird Special, at first enduring catcalls and hostile placards ("Fly Away Black Bird") but the same soft tolerance she used on her husband she used on the southern crowds: "In this country we have many viewpoints. You are entitled to yours. Right now I am entitled to mine." By New Orleans the stories of her sweet courage had turned the risky political journey into a roar of approval and pride.

"U.S. President Bill Clinton talks to former President George Bush as former first lady, Lady Bird Johnson, watches in the East Room of the White House in this November 9, 2000 file photo."

President and Mrs. Bush mourn the passing of Lady Bird Johnson and send condolences to the Johnson family. (Transcript) Earlier today the president and first lady unveiled the newly renovated James S. Brady Press Briefing Room. The president spoke at the ribbon cutting ceremony (Transcript) and Mrs. Bush toured the new work areas around the room. President Bush later spoke about the budget and how to keep the economy growing. (Transcript) Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice spoke at the Organization of American States/African Union Democracy Bridge Forum in Washington. Mrs. Lynne Cheney spoke to students at the Ambassador Baptist Christian...

Just reported.

Christened Claudia Alta Taylor when she was born in a country mansion near Karnack, Texas, she received her nickname "Lady Bird" as a small child; and as Lady Bird she is known and loved throughout America today. Perhaps that name was prophetic, as there has seldom been a First Lady so attuned to nature and the importance of conserving the environment. Her mother, Minnie Pattillo Taylor, died when Lady Bird was five, so she was reared by her father, her aunt, and family servants. From her father, Thomas Jefferson Taylor, who had prospered, she learned much about the business...