WORLD LEADERS GATHER FOR EMOTION-FILLED TRIBUTE.Byline: Lisa Friedman Washington Bureau WASHINGTON - America's weeklong goodbye to Ronald Reagan ended Friday with pomp and pageantry as national and world leaders praised the 40th president as a heroic liberator and eternal optimist who inspired Americans to believe in themselves and their nation's values. In an emotion-filled service at Washington National Cathedral The Cathedral Church of Saint Peter and Saint Paul in the City and Diocese of Washington, known as the Washington National Cathedral, is an Episcopal cathedral in Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States. , thousands of mourners - including four former U.S. presidents, celebrities, family and friends - paid tribute to Reagan, who was eulogized as a man of humility and humor who glowed with the same light of that ``shining city on a hill'' he so often evoked. As bells pealed, a military honor guard carried Reagan's casket out of the cathedral for its journey along streets lined with ordinary citizens to Andrews Air Force Base Andrews Air Force Base, U.S. military installation, 4,279 acres (1,732 hectares), central Md., est. 1943. It is the chief military airport of Washington, D.C., as well as the headquarters for the air force's high-priority airlift command. in suburban Maryland where a Boeing 747 carried it home to California for burial at sunset Friday at the Reagan Presidential Library in Simi Valley. ``When the sun sets tonight on the coast of California and we lay to rest our 40th president, a great American story will close,'' President George W. Bush told mourners. ``Ronald Reagan belongs to the ages now. But we preferred it when he belonged to us.'' One by one, eulogizers recounted the stories of Reagan legend - from his demand that Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev ``tear down this wall'' to his quip quip n. 1. A clever, witty remark often prompted by the occasion. 2. A clever, often sarcastic remark; a gibe. See Synonyms at joke. 3. A petty distinction or objection; a quibble. 4. to doctors after he was wounded in a 1981 assassination Assassination See also Murder. assassins Fanatical Moslem sect that smoked hashish and murdered Crusaders (11th—12th centuries). [Islamic Hist.: Brewer Note-Book, 52] Brutus conspirator and assassin of Julius Caesar. [Br. attempt: ``I hope you're all Republicans.'' Former President George H.W. Bush Noun 1. George H.W. Bush - vice president under Reagan and 41st President of the United States (born in 1924) George Herbert Walker Bush, President Bush, George Bush, Bush , who during his years in the White House and as Reagan's vice president rarely showed emotion, choked back tears and called Reagan ``our friend.'' ``I learned more from Ronald Reagan than from anyone I've encountered in all my years in public life. I learned kindness. We all did. And I learned courage,'' Bush said. He even brought a smile to Nancy Reagan's face, recalling the late president's humor. ``When asked, 'How did your visit go with Bishop Tutu?' he replied, `So-so,''' Bush recalled. Former British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher, in a eulogy she taped several months ago before suffering a series of small strokes, recalled the upbeat personality of Reagan even in times of great stress. ``In his lifetime, Ronald Reagan was such a cheerful and invigorating in·vig·or·ate tr.v. in·vig·or·at·ed, in·vig·or·at·ing, in·vig·or·ates To impart vigor, strength, or vitality to; animate: "A few whiffs of the raw, strong scent of phlox invigorated her" presence that it was easy to forget what daunting daunt tr.v. daunt·ed, daunt·ing, daunts To abate the courage of; discourage. See Synonyms at dismay. [Middle English daunten, from Old French danter, from Latin historic tasks he set himself,'' said Lady Thatcher. The national funeral service came on the final day of a weeklong series of somber events carried out with military pageantry and marking the passing of Reagan, an Illinois native who became a Hollywood film star and served two terms as California governor before becoming the oldest person to serve as U.S. president. Outside public view for most of the past decade, Reagan suffered from Alzheimer's disease Alzheimer's disease (ăls`hī'mərz, ôls–), degenerative disease of nerve cells in the cerebral cortex that leads to atrophy of the brain and senile dementia. . He died last Saturday at 93 from pneumonia. In a day that began with gray, drizzly skies, Nancy Reagan, 82, touched millions of hearts as the nation watched her gently stroke and kiss the flag that covered her husband's casket when it was carried out of the U.S. Capitol Rotunda rotunda In Classical and Neoclassical architecture, a building or room that is circular in plan and covered with a dome. The Pantheon is a Classical Roman rotunda. The Villa Rotonda at Vicenza, designed by Andrea Palladio, is an Italian Renaissance example. and made its way to the cathedral. She arrived led by a military escort and allowed President George W. Bush to guide her the last steps to her seat. The service was carried off with a stately precision that many said Reagan himself would have appreciated. The former president planned many of the details himself before his death, including the selection of Irish tenor Ronan Tynan to sing ``Amazing Grace,'' inviting the elder Bush and Thatcher to speak, and asking Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O'Connor Sandra Day O'Connor (born March 26 1930) is an American jurist who served as the first female Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States from 1981 to 2006. She was considered a strict constructionist. to do a reading. Cathedral florists ordered 7,000 stems of hydrangeas, Solomon seal and magnolias for the event - all white, exactly as Nancy Reagan desired. At once somber and mournful, the funeral - which drew an estimated 3,700 mourners - also was a gathering of world leaders. United Nations Secretary-General The Secretary-General of the United Nations is the head of the Secretariat, one of the principal organs of the United Nations. The Secretary-General acts as the de facto spokesperson and leader of the United Nations. Kofi Annan spoke with British Prime Minister Tony Blair as Jordan's King Abdullah greeted Afghan President Hamid Karzai. Former Presidents Gerald Ford and Jimmy Carter chatted while former President Bill Clinton conferred with presidential hopeful Sen. John Kerry of Massachusetts and gave a bear hug Bear Hug An offer made by a company to buy the shares of another company that is too high for the board of the target firm to refuse. Notes: If the target company says the merger is okay but they want a higher price, it is called a "teddy bear hug. to German Chancellor Gerard Schroeder. British Prime Minister Tony Blair was in attendance, as was comedian Joan Rivers. Honorary pallbearers were entertainer Merv Griffin, former Reagan aides Michael K. Deaver and Fred Ryan, Brig. Gen. John E. Hutton John Edward Hutton (March 28, 1828 - December 28, 1893) was a U.S. Representative from Missouri. Born in Polk County, Tennessee, Hutton moved with his parents to Troy, Missouri, in 1831. He attended the common schools. He taught school and at the same time studied medicine. , Reagan's White House physician, and Charles Z. Wick, former Hollywood producer and former head of the U.S. Information Agency The U.S. Information Agency (USIA) was the public diplomacy arm of the U.S. government. The USIA existed "to further the national interest by improving United States relations with other countries and peoples through the broadest possible sharing of ideas, information, and . Before the stirring service, Rep. Adam Schiff, D-Pasadena, chatted with former Vice President Walter Mondale and recalled the time he heard Reagan speak at Harvard Law School Harvard Law School (colloquially, Harvard Law or HLS) is one of the professional graduate schools of Harvard University. Located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, Harvard Law is considered one of the most prestigious law schools in the United States. . ``It shows the real strength of the country that you have presidents of both parties, and members of Congress from both parties, coming together to pay their respects to a man who served the nation,'' Schiff said. Peggy Noonan, Reagan's longtime speechwriter speech·writ·er n. One who writes speeches for others, especially as a profession. speech  writ and biographer, said she found the words of George H.W. Bush particularly poignant. ``When he talked about the man he clearly loved and who he learned from - how humble and how gracious was that? Both my old bosses made me proud today.'' As former Sen. John Danforth, the Episcopal minister who officiated at the service, concluded the commendation, three military officers approached Reagan's casket. Two turned and stood silently at either end, as if guarding over it. Then, the same eight military pallbearers who hours earlier had brought Reagan inside the cathedral lifted the casket and paused. With that, they filed outside in the cold rain and placed the former president on his final trip back to Andrews Air Force Base and finally, California. As Ronald Reagan departed, the cathedral bells tolled low a mournful 40 times, in homage to the nation's 40th president. His final send-off was accompanied by a full peal of church bells lasting more than three hours, almost until the president arrived home. Lisa Friedman, (202) 662-8731 lisa.friedman(at)langnews.com CAPTION(S): 2 photos Photo: (1) Nancy Reagan and her children, left, watch as former President Reagan's casket is carried from the U.S. Capitol on Friday. In the background are President George W. Bush and the four former presidents. (2) Ronald Reagan's son Michael, left, daughter Patti Davis, second from left, and son Ron Jr., right, with his wife, Doria, watch as the former president's body is removed from the U.S. Capitol. Dennis Cook/Associated Press |
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