On December 26, 2006, Gerald Ford, the 38th president of the United States and the 40th vice president, died at his home at 40471 Sand Dune Rd., in Rancho Mirage, California, at 6:45 p.m. local time (02:45, December 27, UTC). At 8:49 p.m. local time, his wife of 58 years, Betty Ford, issued a statement announcing his death. The causes of death listed on the death certificate were arteriosclerotic cerebrovascular disease and diffuse arteriosclerosis.
At the age of 93 years and 165 days, Ford was the longest-lived U.S. president in history at the time of his death, a record which has since been surpassed by George H. W. Bush and Jimmy Carter.
Ford was the second former U.S. president to die during the presidency of George W. Bush and the second to die in the twenty-first century, the first being Ronald Reagan.
Tributes from world leaders
Upon Ford's death, President George W. Bush said in a written statement:
Laura and I are greatly saddened by the passing of former President Gerald R. Ford. President Ford was a great American who gave many years of dedicated service to our country. On August 9, 1974, after a long career in the House of Representatives and service as Vice President, he assumed the Presidency in an hour of national turmoil and division. With his quiet integrity, common sense, and kind instincts, President Ford helped heal our land and restore public confidence in the Presidency. The American people will always admire Gerald Ford's devotion to duty, his personal character, and the honorable conduct of his administration. We mourn the loss of such a leader, and our 38th President will always have a special place in our Nation's memory. On behalf of all Americans, Laura and I offer our deepest sympathies to Betty Ford and all of President Ford's family. Our thoughts and prayers will be with them in the hours and days ahead.
There were also tributes from other Americans, including the living former American presidents: Jimmy Carter, George H. W. Bush, and Bill Clinton, as well as Ford's former Chief of Staff, Vice President Dick Cheney and former First Lady Nancy Reagan.
Foreign leaders who paid tribute included Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper, Czech President Václav Klaus and German President Horst Köhler. Harper advised Governor General Michaëlle Jean to order all flags across Canada flown to half-staff from sunrise to sunset on January 2, 2007, in sympathy with the national day of mourning in the U.S. In the United Kingdom, the Union Flag at Buckingham Palace was flown at half-staff on December 28.
Funeral arrangements
Gregory Willard, President Ford's personal attorney and former White House aide, was responsible for the overall planning and conduct of the state funeral as president and Mrs. Ford and the Ford family's designated personal representative. The Joint Force Headquarters National Capital Region (JFHQ-NCR)/Military District of Washington (MDW), which oversees the military and ceremonial portions of state funerals, assisted President Ford and the Ford family in development of the funeral plans.
Army Major General Guy C. Swan III, Commanding General of the MDW (CG MDW) and JFHQ-NCR, was Betty Ford's official escort throughout the State Funeral. Michael Wagener, Chief of State Funeral Plans, was the MDW civilian liaison for the Ford family. Mr. Wagner provided advice to president and Mrs. Ford and the Ford family in planning the state funeral and accompanied the family throughout the state funeral.
The schedule for the state funeral was announced at a press briefing on December 27 in Palm Desert, California. The briefing was conducted by Gregory Willard, and also attended by Barbara Owens, spokesperson for the MDW, and by the Riverside County Sheriff. A personal statement from Betty Ford was read by Willard, and he announced details and answered media questions regarding the state funeral.
President and Mrs. Ford and their family previously chose to have the state funeral and related services conducted in three phases (Palm Desert, California; Washington, DC; Grand Rapids, Michigan), with interment in a previously selected hillside tomb next to the Gerald R. Ford Presidential Museum in Grand Rapids, Michigan. The services and ceremonies were conducted from December 29 through January 3.
Columnist Peggy Noonan summarized the nation's heartfelt farewell, "Ford's was the most human of presidential funerals. Maybe because the Fords wanted so little done, so insisted on modesty, all that was done was genuine and sincere, and ... perfect."
The state funeral took place at the U.S. Capitol on Saturday, December 30, 2006, with further funeral services on January 2 at Washington National Cathedral and on January 3 at Grace Episcopal Church in Grand Rapids. In addition, private services were conducted with Mrs. Ford and the family at St. Margaret's Episcopal Church in Palm Desert, California, and at the Gerald R. Ford Presidential Museum in Grand Rapids, Michigan. Mrs. Ford and her family also received approximately 300 invited guests at a December 29 visitation at St. Margaret's Church.
Ford's casket was flown to Washington and then on to Grand Rapids aboard the VC-25A Presidential Aircraft (29000), which normally serves as Air Force One. The hearse used to carry President Ford's casket flew the American Flag and had the Presidential Seal affixed to the sides.
Upon Ford's death, the nation's flags were ordered flown at half staff for 30 days. President George W. Bush declared a national day of mourning for President Ford on Tuesday, January 2, 2007, to mark the funeral service.
There were twenty honorary pallbearers for the services and ceremonies in Washington, D.C., and thirteen honorary pallbearers in Grand Rapids.
- Martin J. Allen, Jr., retired banker;
- James A. Baker III, former Secretary of State and Secretary of the Treasury; President Ford's Under Secretary of Commerce and Presidential Campaign National Chairman;
- Robert E. Barrett, President Ford's White House Army Aide;
- James Cannon, President Ford's White House Domestic Policy Advisor; author, Time And Chance: Gerald Ford's Appointment With History;
- Kenneth I. Chenault, chairman and chief executive officer, American Express Company;
- Dick Cheney, Vice President of the United States; former Secretary of Defense; President Ford's White House Chief of Staff;
- Mary Sue Coleman, President, University of Michigan;
- William T. Coleman, Jr., President Ford's Secretary of Transportation;
- Richard DeVos, co-founder of Amway Corporation;
- Robert J. Dole, Former U.S. Senator; 1996 Republican presidential candidate; President Ford's vice presidential running mate;
- Richard A. Ford, Younger brother of President Ford;
- David G. Frey, Philanthropist and bank executive with JPMorgan Chase;
- Pepi Gramshammer, Member of original founders group – Vail, Colorado; former member, Austrian National Ski Team;
- Alan Greenspan, Former Chairman of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System; chairman, President Ford's Council of Economic Advisors;
- Robert T. Hartmann, White House Counsellor to President Ford;
- Carla A. Hills, President Ford's Secretary of Housing and Urban Development;
- Robert L. Hooker, Philanthropist and retired business executive;
- Henry A. Kissinger, President Ford's Secretary of State and National Security Advisor;
- John O. Marsh, White House Counsellor to President Ford;
- Frederik Meijer, Chairman Emeritus, Meijer, Inc.;
- Jack Nicklaus, Professional Golfer; chairman, Nicklaus Design;
- Paul H. O'Neill, Former Secretary of the Treasury; deputy director, President Ford's Office of Management and Budget;
- Leon W. Parma, President, Parma Management Co., Inc.;
- Donald H. Rumsfeld, President Ford's White House Chief of Staff and Secretary of Defense;
- Brent Scowcroft, President Ford's National Security Advisor;
- Peter F. Secchia, Retired Businessman;
- L. William Seidman, President Ford's White House Assistant for Economic Policy;
- Steve Van Andel, chairman, Alticor Inc.;
- Sanford I. Weill, Chairman Emeritus, Citigroup Inc.;
- Frank Zarb, Administrator of President Ford's Federal Energy Administration;
- Glenn "Bo" Schembechler (In memoriam), former Head Football Coach, University of Michigan.
Former President Jimmy Carter and his wife Rosalynn accompanied Mrs. Ford and the Ford family aboard the presidential aircraft from Washington, DC to Grand Rapids. Vice President and Mrs. Dick Cheney and former Ford White House Chief of Staff and Secretary of Defense and Mrs. Donald Rumsfeld joined the Ford family in Grand Rapids for the funeral service at Grace Episcopal Church and for the subsequent interment. At the conclusion of the interment service, Vice President Cheney presented the folded American flag from the casket to Mrs. Ford.
Several elements of the state funeral paid tribute to Ford's service in the Navy during World War II. They included a member of the Navy bearing the presidential flag, the Navy Hymn, "Eternal Father, Strong to Save", a Navy rifle team firing three volleys, and a Navy bugler blowing "Taps", a boatswain's mate sounding "Pipe The Side" at the World War II Memorial, the Chaplain of the Navy reading the Prayers during the Funeral Service at the National Cathedral, and female naval officers who were graduates of the U.S. Naval Academy gathering at the ceremonial pause at the World War II Memorial to pay tribute to President Ford's being the first president to appoint women to the Naval Academy.
Security measures
The Department of Homeland Security designated the Washington phase of the state funeral as a National Special Security Event.
Events in California
Ford's body was taken to Eisenhower Medical Center, where it remained until the start of state funeral services on December 29. That day, his casket was transported by motorcade from Eisenhower Hospital to St. Margaret's Episcopal Church in Palm Desert, California. Mrs. Ford and the family proceeded to the porch of St. Margaret's from where they viewed the arrival ceremony. Mrs. Ford was accompanied on the porch by General Guy Swan, her children and their spouses. Opposite them on the porch were President and Mrs. Ford's seven grandchildren, and their spouses, and two of their four great-granddaughters. The arrival ceremony included musical honors by a Marine Band from Twentynine Palms Marine Base. The casket was carried into the church, where Mrs. Ford and family members attended a private prayer service inside. Following the prayer service, Mrs. Ford and the family had a period of private time alone in the church. Thereafter, long-time staff members of President Ford, including Ms. Penny Circle, Ms. Ann Cullen, Mr. Lee Simmons, and Mr. David Hume Kennerly, were escorted by Gregory Willard to pay their respects at the casket.
Beginning at 1:20 p.m., Mrs. Ford and the family received several hundred invited friends and guests until 3:10 p.m. After the visitation, Mrs. Ford and the family returned to the Ford residence in Rancho Mirage, California, and members of President and Mrs. Ford's U.S. Secret Service detail and their families, together with local law enforcement and government officials, were invited to pay their respects privately at the casket. The casket was then moved onto the altar at St. Margaret's, and a period of public repose commenced at 4:20 p.m. PST. The public repose continued until the following morning. Due to the extremely large crowds who wished to pay their respects to the former president, the public was directed to the Indian Wells Tennis Garden, from where they were transported by shuttle buses to and from the public repose at St. Margaret's Church. Each person attending the repose was presented a special tribute card on behalf of Mrs. Ford and the family. During the repose, some family members returned to St. Margaret's and greeted and thanked several thousand of the guests for their tributes and condolences.
The public repose concluded at approximately 8:00 a.m. on December 30, 2006. At 8:45 a.m. Mrs. Ford and her family returned to St. Margaret's Church, where a Departure Ceremony was conducted. President Ford's casket was then transported by motorcade to Palm Springs International Airport, where large crowds had gathered to pay tribute to President Ford and say farewell. Following a departure ceremony at the airport that included musical honors and a 21-gun salute by a cannon battery from 3rd Battalion 11th Marines, the casket was loaded onto a Boeing VC-25 at approximately 9:55 a.m. The aircraft departed shortly thereafter en route to Washington, D.C.