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Ford, Betty - Biography
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Ford, Betty - Biography
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Sheila R. Weidenfeld Files (Ford Administration)
Sheila Weidenfeld's General Subject Files
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President (1974-1977 : Ford). Office of the First Lady. 1974-1977
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The original documents are located in Box 37, folder "Ford, Betty - Biography" of the
Sheila Weidenfeld Files at the Gerald R. Ford Presidential Library.
Copyright Notice
The copyright law of the United States (Title 17, United States Code) governs the making of
photocopies or other reproductions of copyrighted material. Gerald Ford donated to the United
States of America his copyrights in all of his unpublished writings in National Archives collections.
Works prepared by U.S. Government employees as part of their official duties are in the public
domain. The copyrights to materials written by other individuals or organizations are presumed to
remain with them. If you think any of the information displayed in the PDF is subject to a valid
copyright claim, please contact the Gerald R. Ford Presidential Library.
Digitized from Box 37 of the Sheila Weidenfeld Files at the Gerald R. Ford Presidential Library
NOTES ON MRS. FORD
March 18, 1975
FMC BACKGROUND
Mrs. Ford's father died when she was 16 years old. When
she was 21 her mother married Arthur M. Godwin. Mr. Godwin
had been a friend of both Mrs. Ford's mother and father.
In 1948 Mrs. Ford's mother had a heart attack and died.
Mr. Godwin married a woman by the name of Lil in Grand
Rapids, Michigan. Mr. Godwin had been married prior to
his marriage to Mrs. Ford's mother. His first wife was
killed in Mexico in 1936 in an automobile accident.
Mr. Godwin was with her.
Mrs. Ford's first husband was William C. Warren, a local
furniture salesman. They were married in 1942 and the
marriage lasted 5 years. Mrs. Ford cannot remember either
the day or month they were married. They were divorced in
the fall of 1947.
Mrs. Ford worked at Herpolsheimers Department Store where
she was employed as a fashion coordinator. The store name
has not been shortened to "Herps."
FORD of 07/230 LIBRARY
Marlene Miller
Sample Biography #1
Aug. 7, 1975
SEAL
FORD
MRS. GERALD R. FORD
LIBRARY
When Elizabeth (Betty) Bloomer Ford was 16 she and a
group of high school friends visited a tea leaf reader.
"You will be meeting kings and queens and people of
great prominence. You will have an extraordinary life," she
was told.
Today as the wife of the 38th President of the United
States Mrs. Ford does indeed lead an extraordinary life com-
bining her roles as wife, mother and public figure with the
grace and discipline she developed as a member of the famed
Martha Graham dance troupe.
First and foremost a devoted family woman, Mrs. Ford
has, as First Lady, spoken out firmly in support of the arts,
help for the handicapped and equal opportunities for women.
"I feel strongly that ratification of the Equal Rights
Amendment is the single most important step our nation can
take to insure equal opportunity for all Americans," she said.
"I've had an active career, and the great advantage of
being a mother and raising four children. Now I have another
fulltime job seven days a week, 24 hours a day. I've had the
best of both worlds."
In her present role as First Lady, Mrs. Ford has al-
ready begun to focus attention on American-made crafts
and products. Centerpieces at state dinners have featured a
wide range of American-made handiwork from wooden decoys to
Biography ,FI -- pg 2
handmade crystal. Wine grown in American vineyards is served
at these functions.
A product of the American midwest, Mrs. Ford was born
Elizabeth Anne Bloomer on April 8, 1918, in Chicago, Illinois,
to William and Hortense Bloomer. The family moved to Grand
Rapids, Michigan, when Mrs. Ford was three and she graduated
from high school there in 1936.
After two years as a modern dance major at the Bennington
School of Dance in Vermont, Mrs. Ford moved to New York where
she continued her dance training under Martha Graham, becoming
a member of the Martha Graham Concert Group. She also did part-
time modelling.
In 1941 she returned to Grand Rapids taking a job as
fashion coordinator for a department store and teaching movement
and dance to crippled and handicapped children.
She married Gerald R. Ford on Oct. 15, 1948, one month
before he was elected to Congress for the first time. She has
since devoted herself to their growing family, Mike, Jack, Steve
and Susan , while providing loving support for her husband as
he rose through the Republican ranks to Minority Leader, Vice
President and President.
#
GERALD FORD
Mrs. Gerald R. Ford
Elizabeth Anne Bloomer was born in Chicago,
Illinois, on April 18, 1918, the youngest child and only daughter
of Hortense and William Stephenson Bloomer. The family
moved thei three chidren to Grand Rapids, Michigan, when
their daughter was three.
At the age of eight, Betty Bloomer began a lifest
lifelong interest by studying dance. After graduation from Central
HIgh School in 1936, she attended two summer sessions of Bennington
School of Dance, where she first met Martha Grahm. She continued
and with Miss graham
her dance career in New YOrk City, where she joined BRENX one
of Miss Graham's # troupss and modeled with the John Powers Agency.
mother
Persuaded by her month to return to Grand Rapids,
Betty Bloomer became a fashion omerk coordinator for a local
department store. She also formed he r own dance group
and taught dance to handicapped children.
On October 14, 1948, Betty married Gerald R. Ford, who
was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives from Michigans
of Fifth District only weeks after their wedding.
The Fords settled in Alexandria, Virginia, and within
seven years, had four children. Betty Ford's activities during the
1950s and 1960s centered on her husband and children. Scouting,
the PTA and keeping up with three sons Mike, Jack, Steven and
R daughter Susan left time only for extonsive involvement with the Republican
Party and the Episcopal Church.
Her husband's confirmation as Vice-President in 1973
brought new responsibilities, which increased when he became
President in August, 1974.
As First Lady, Mrs. Ford has continued her interest t
and handfcrafts
handicapped children and
in the arts and focused attention on women's issues. XXXXX
XX WXXtX XXX XXMX XXr
& XXXXXXX She has brought
to White House entertaining the released relaxed and warm atmosphere,
which has always characterized hax the Ford's home.
-30-
ELIZABETH B. FORD
(Mrs. Gerald R. Ford)
August 20, 1965
Mrs. Gerald R. Ford, known to her friends as Betty, was born Elizabeth
Bloomer in Chicago, Illinois. However, since she moved to Grand Rapids, Michi-
gan at the age of three, she has always claimed that city as her home.
Betty attended the Fountain Street Elementary School and graduated from
Central High School in 1936. After finishing high school she went on to study
modern dance at the Bennington College in Vermont under the direction of Martha
Graham, Doris Humphrey, Charles Weidman, and Hanya Holm. Before returning to
her home in Grand Rapids Where for several years she did modeling and was a
fashion coordinator for one of the Grand Rapids stores, Mrs. Ford continued a
more intensive dance course with Martha Graham in New York where she became a
member of the Martha Graham Concert Group.
On October 15, 1948 Elizabeth Bloomer married Gerald R. Ford, who a
few weeks later was elected United States Representative in Congress from the
Fifth District of Michigan and is now Minority Leader of the House of Repre-
sentatives. The Fords have four children: Michael Gerald (March 15, 1950),
John Gardner (March 16, 1952), Steven Meigs (May 19, 1956), and Susan Eliza-
beth, born July 6, 1957.
Although the care of the four children prevents frequent visits to her
home in Grand Rapids except during vacations and holidays, Mrs. Ford does main-
tain close ties with her friends there through the organization to which she
belongs. She is a member of the Grand Rapids Junior League, the Republican
Womens Club of Grand Rapids, and Grace Episcopal Church.
In Washington where she resides the greater part of the year because of
her husband's office, Betty is active in the International Wives Group, the 81st
Congressional Wives Club, the Congressional Club (Republicans and Democrats), is
Program Chairman for the Republican Wives Club, and has recently been elected to
the Board of Directors of the League of Republican Women in the District of
Columbia. She was also program chairman for the Cancer Society Benefit campaign
for 1965 in Alexandria, Virginia. Hobbies are skiing and gardening.
MRS. GERALD R. FORD
The wife of the 38th President of the United States is first a wife
and mother, a woman with a strong belief in the importance of
a strong family unit. But she is also a woman with a great many
personal interests as well, ranging from the Arts and mentally
retarded children to womens rights.
Elizabeth (Betty) Bloomer Ford is 57 years old, a petite woman with
carefully groomed auburn hair and a sense of style. She has been
married to Gerald R. Ford since 1948, the year he first ran and
won the seat as congressman from Grand Rapids, Mich. The
President and Mrs. Ford are the parents of four children: Mike, 25;
Jack, 23; Steve, 18; and Susan, 17.
During her husband's administration, Mrs. Ford hopes to focus
on American-made handcrafts and goods. Christmas at the White
House this year, for example, centered around a handmade crafts
and quilts theme, emphasizing goods by craftsmen across the country
and focusing on natural woods, pine cones and greens.
Already, entertaining at the White House emphasizes American-made
products, starting with the purchase of American wines for official
dinners. Centerpieces at these dinners for foreign dignitaries
utilize some aspect of American handcrafts, from the use of handmade
antique wooden decoys to the borrowing of collections of handmade
American crystals and porcelains to use as centerpieces.
Mrs. Ford was born Elizabeth Anne Bloomer in Chicago, Ill., and
moved to Grand Rapids at the age of three. After graduating from a
Grand Rapids high school in 1936, Mrs. Ford attended the Bennington
School of Dance in Vermont for two years. She majored in modern
dance there, studying under Martha Graham, Doris Humphrey, Charles
Weidman and Hanya Holm.
Her early professional career was spent in New York, also studying
in a more intensive dance course under Martha Graham and
eventually as a member of the Martha Graham Concert Group. She
also modeled part-time during this period.
She returned to Grand Rapids in 1941, organizing her own dance group
and taking a job as a model and fashion coordinator for a department
store. As a volunteer, she became involved with teaching movement
and dance to crippled and handicapped children.
After her marriage to Gerald Ford and subsequent move to Alexandria,
Va., Mrs. Ford concentrated on raising the family and being wife
and helpmate to congressman and eventual Minority Leader Ford. And
in 1973. with only one child left in high school, she was thinking
seriously of going back to work, if she could find something
part-time. December came, and the job found her -- wife of the
Vice President. And August, 1974 brought the more-than-full-time
job: First Lady of the United States.
#
#
#
#
JANUARY 1976
MRS. GERALD R. FORD
Elizabeth Anne Bloomer was born in Chicago, Illinois on April
18, 1918, the youngest child and only daughter of Hortense and
William Stephenson Bloomer. The Bloomers moved their three children
to Grand Rapids, Michigan, when their daughter was three.
At the age of eight, Betty Bloomer began a lifelong enthusiasm
by studying dance at the Calla Travis School. After graudation from
Central High School in 1936, she attended two summer sessions of the
Bennington School of Dance, where she first met Martha Graham. Her
dance career continued in New York City, where she joined one of
Miss Graham's troupes and modeled with the John Powers Agency.
Persuaded by her mother to return to Grand Rapids, Betty Bloomer
became a fashion coordinator for a local department store. She also
formed her own dance group and taught dance to handicapped children.
On October 15, 1948, Betty married Gerald R. Ford, who was
elected to the U.S. House of Representatives from Michigan's Fifth Dis-
trict only weeks after their wedding.
The Fords settled in Alexandria, Virginia, and within seven years,
had four children. Betty Ford's activities during the 1950s and 60s
centered on her husband and children. Scouting, the PTA and keeping up
with three sons Mike, Jack, Steve and daughter Susan left time for few
other activities. Mrs. Ford chose to focus on the Episcopal Church
and the Republican Party. in her spare moments.
In 1973, with Susan the only child left in high school, Mrs. Ford
seriously considered going back to work part-time. But her husband's
confirmation as Vice-President in December, 1973, interrupted that
thought. His new job brought new official responsibilities, which in-
creased when he became President in August, 1974.
Official entertaining, a lively interest in the arts and concern
about women's issues are part of her life now, but her most important
duties remain those of a wife and mother.
One writer described Betty Ford this way: "Perhaps she is no
different from a lot of good, strong, courageous women-that she repre-
sents the best of us--and that is what cheers us most--that we know there
are a lot of Betty Fords in America that help to keep us together and
give us strength as individuals, as families, as communities and as a
Nation." That thought pleases Betty Ford very much.
Revised Copy
(Elizabeth Anne Bloomer was born in Chicago,
lekix
Illinois on April 18, 1918, the youngest child and only daughter
of
Hortense and William Stephenson Bloomer. The
Bloomers moved their three children to Grand Rapids, Michigan,
when their daughter was three.
a
(At the age of eight, Betty Bloomer began her lifelong
(enthusian by studying dance
interest in danee with studies at the Calla Travis School. After
graduation from Contral Central High School in1936, Betty attended
two summer sessions of the Bennington School of Dancex, where
she first met met Martha Granx Graham. Her dance career continued
in New york City, where she joined one of k Miss Graham's troupes and
modeled with the John Powers Agency.
(Persuaded by her mother to return to Grand Rapids, Betty
became a fasix fakiox fashion coordinator for a local department store.
She also formed her own dance group and taught dance to handicapped
children.
On obslex October 15, 1948, Betty married Gerald R. Ford,
who was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives txxx
their
from Mixhix Michigan's Fifth District only weeks EXEX after the weedi
wedding.
The fa Fords K settled in suburban Alexandria, Virginia,
Wxbxixex
Page Two
and within seven years, the couple had four children. Betty Ford's
activities during the 1950s and 60s centered on her husband and
children.
Scouting, the PTA and keeping
up with her three sons, Mike, Jack, Steve, and daughter Susan
kept her busy. Mrs. Ford also
XXX
was involved in the activities of the Episcopal
Church and the Republican Party.
In 1973 with Sukan Susan the only child left in high school,
Mrs. Ford seriously considered going back to work part-time. When
Her husband's confirmation as Vice-President in December, 1973,
brought officialx responsibitilities, which increased whe n hexx
he became President
Exx the Fords be moved to the White House in 1974.
Ofic Official entertaining, a lively interest in the arts and
are part of her life
concern about women's issues occupy her and talents now, but
her most important duties remain those of a wife and mother.
One writer described Betty Ford this way:
" Perhpas she is non-differxx different from a lot of good, strong,
BERALD
courageous women that she represents the best of us -- and that
is what cheers us most --that we know there are a lot of Betty Fords
in America that help to keep us together and give us strength as individuals,
as families, as communities and as a Nation. That thought pleases
Betty Ford very NXX much.
30.
©100MICHIGAMO
G2O0
ELIZABETH ANNE BLOOMER FORD
C
FIRST LADY
C
Born-1918
Betty Ford was born on April 8, 1918, the youngest daughter of
Hortense Neehr and William Stephenson Bloomer (a name of English
origin meaning "bloom of the iron"). She attended Fountain Street
School and started dancing training at eight years of age. At fourteen
she had become assistant dance instructor at the Calla Travis School.
Her interest in the handicapped probably started at this age when
she taught a blind man ballroom dancing.
After her graduation from Central High School in 1936, Betty
attended Bennington School of the Dance in Vermont for two years,
majoring in modern dance under the direction of Martha Graham, Doris
Humphrey, Charles Weidman and Hanya Holm. She credits these exceptional
teachers with a great deal of influence on her life. She continued her
study with Martha Graham in New York City becoming a member of the
Martha Graham Concert Group and working as a professional model for the
John Robert Powers Agency.
She returned to Grand Rapids in 1942 to become a model and fashion
coordinator for a large department store, organizing fashion shows,
coordinating window displays and selecting clothes from New York
designers. She formed her own dance group and taught black and handi-
capped children evenings. On October 15, 1948, Betty married Gerald R.
Ford, Attorney, who a few weeks later was elected United States
Representative to Congress from the Fifth Michigan District.
The Fords have four children - Michael Gerald, John Gardner, Steven
Meigs and Susan Elizabeth. Betty Ford's activities have centered
around her family. In Grand Rapids she was a member of the Junior
Elizabeth Anne Bloomer Ford
Page Two
League, Republican Women's Club and Grace Episcopal Church. In Washington
she is a member of the International Wives Club, 81st Congress Wives Club,
Congress Club, Republican Women's Club, on the Board of Directors of the
Washington, D. C. League of Republican Women and President of the Red
Cross Senate Wives Club. She taught Sunday School at Immanuel-on-the
Hill Episcopal Church in Alexandria, was a Cub Scout Den Mother and the
Alexandria Cancer Soceety Benefit Campaign Chairman.
Her interests are primarily in the problems of the handicapped and
in the Fine Arts. She was Guest of Honor at the launching of the South-
eastern United States tour of "Artrain" - a project of the Michigan Arts
Council, partially funded by the National Endowment for the Arts.
She was Commencement Speaker at Westminister Choir College, Princeton,
New Jersey, in 1975 and active participant in the Washington Heart
Association's Heart Sunday, Salvation Army Auxiliary's Annual Fashion
Show luncheon and in benefits for Washington's Hospital for Sick Children.
We can say with the writer of Proverbs, Chapter 31:
The heart of her husband doth safely trust in her
she will do him good
and not evil
she worketh diligently
she stretcheth out her hand to
the poor; yea she reacheth forth her hands to the needy
strength and
honor are her clothing
she looketh well to the ways of her household
her children arise up and call her blessed; her husband also and he
praiseth her.
QL
Birthdate:
April 8, 1918
MRS. GERALD R. FORD
The wife of the 38th President of the United States is first a wife
and mother, a woman with a strong belief in the importance of
a strong family unit. But she is also a woman with a great many
personal interests as well, ranging from the Arts and mentally
retarded children to womens rights.
Elizabeth (Betty) Bloomer Ford is 57 years old, a petite woman with
carefully groomed auburn hair and a sense of style. She has been
married to Gerald R. Ford since 1948, the year he first ran and
won the seat as congressman from Grand Rapids, Mich. The
President and Mrs. Ford are the parents of four children: Mike, 25;
Jack, 23; Steve, 18; and Susan, 17.
During her husband's administration, Mrs. Ford hopes to focus
on American-made handcrafts and goods. Christmas at the White
House this year, for example, centered around a handmade crafts
and quilts theme, emphasizing goods by craftsmen across the country
and focusing on natural woods, pine cones and greens.
Already, entertaining at the White House emphasizes American-made
products, starting with the purchase of American wines for official
dinners. Centerpieces at these dinners for foreign dignitaries
utilize some aspect of American handcrafts, from the use of handmade
antique wooden decoys to the borrowing of collections of handmade
American crystals and porcelains to use as centerpieces.
Mrs. Ford was born Elizabeth Anne Bloomer in Chicago, Ill., and
moved to Grand Rapids at the age of three. After graduating from a
Grand Rapids high school in 1936, Mrs. Ford attended the Bennington
School of Dance in Vermont for two years. She majored in modern
dance there, studying under Martha Graham, Doris Humphrey, Charles
Weidman and Hanya Holm.
Her early professional career was spent in New York, also studying
in a more intensive dance course under Martha Graham and
eventually as a member of the Martha Graham Concert Group. She
also modeled part-time during this period.
She returned to Grand Rapids in 1941, organizing her own dance group
and taking a job as a model and fashion coordinator for a department
store. As a volunteer, she became involved with teaching movement
and dance to crippled and handicapped children.
After her marriage to Gerald Ford and subsequent move to Alexandria,
Va., Mrs. Ford concentrated on raising the family and being wife
and helpmate to congressman and eventual Minority Leader Ford. And
in 1973, with only one child left in high school, she was thinking
seriously of going back to work, if she could find something
part-time. December came, and the job found her -- wife of the
Vice President. And August, 1974 brought the more-than-full-time
job: First Lady of the United States.
#
#
#
RADIO TV REPORTS, INC.
41 EAST 42ND STREET, NEW YORK, N.Y. 10017, 697-5100
FOR
NBC "TODAY"
PROGRAM TODAY SHOW
STATION WNBC/TV AND THE NBC
TELEVISION NETWORK
August 15,n 1974
AM
CITY
New York
DATE
A PROFILE OF MRS. GERALD FORD
BARBARA WALTERS: When Gerald Ford made his first speech
as President last Friday he said, I'm indebted to no man, and
to only one woman, my dear wife.'
The Fords have a close marriage. Like the Elsenhowers, they
openly please it by continuing to share a double bed in the White
House. We're beginning to know a good deal about our new Presi-
dent, and here is what we know now of our First Lady.
Betty Ford was born Betty Bloomer. She was the daughter
of a U.S. Rubber salesman from Grand Rapids, Michigan She says
she never expected to find herself in the White House. She des
cribed herself as just a plain, normal girl who was happy that
she married someone she thought was going to be a lawyer.
But Betty Ford is more than the plain country girl she calls
herself. She started taking dance lessons as a child of eight,
and she went on to study dance in New York at twenty. She earned
a living as a John Powers model while she was with the Martha
Graham troupe. And she was on the point of becoming a professional
dancer when her parents asked her to come home and reconsider
her decision. She did, and she stayed home.
In Grand Rapids she took a job as a fashion coordinator,
she started an amateur dance group, and she got married. But
not to Gerald Ford. That first marriage ended in divorce after
five years. And at the age of thirty she married Ford just before
his election tid) Congress. They have been married for twenty-six
years.
Her divorce had been no secret in Grand Rapids, but word
didn't reach Washington until last year. Asked why she kept it
a secret, she said simply, "No one asked me about it." But that
divorce will make her the second divorcee in the White House.
The first was Florence Cling Harding.
Mrs. Ford is unusually candid. She talked openly about her
twenty-six years of being a housewife, and the wife of a professional
OFFICES IN: NEW YORK
DETROIT
I.OS ANGELES
WASHINGTON, D.C.
CHICAGO
AND OTHER PRINCIPAL CITIES
[2]
politician. She says of her husband's hectic political schedule,
she was left almost single-handed to raise their four children.
She developed pains and a pinched nerve, and for relief she
turned to psychiatry and tranquilizers, sometimes taking as many
as three valiums a day. She speaks openly of this, even though
she has been criticized for doing so. Many people, it seems,
feel that presidents' wives shouldn't need tranquilizers, and
shouldn't have nerves.
She's open too in admitting that she smokes, and she doesn't
intend to hide it because she's First Lady. Nor does she refrain
from sipping an occasional vodka and tonic in front of reporters,
nor. admitting that she has a social drink with her husband when
he comes home.
She likes clothes, she looks well in them, she has an extensive
wardrobe. She's very thin, but curvy, a hundred and eight pounds,
five foot six, a size six.
She's also greatly spiritual, devotes at least a. half-hour
a day to Biblical reading. She used to teach Sunday school, and
the Fords belong to a prayer group.
None of the Fords' children is exactly a conformist. Michael
twenty-four, who married a schoolmate last month, attends a Massa-
chusetts theological school, although he's not sure that he wants
to be a minister. Twenty-two year old John majored in forestry
at Utah State. He shaved off his beard last year when his father
became Vice President.
That was eighteen year old Steven you were just looking at,
and he's apparently taking the year off working out west after
enrolling at Duke University. And seventeen year old Susan, who
is the Fords' only daughter, and you see her on the right in our
picture. We'll be seeing a great deal of her at the White House,
because she's the only member of the family who will be living
there. But she attends a board school in Bethesda, Maryland during
the week.
Members of the Michigan delegation call Betty Ford intelligent
and informed. When I interviewed her on Today right after her
husband became Vice President, Mrs. Ford spoke out in favor of
day care centers and abortion. As First Lady she says that her
major areas of interest will be the performing arts and work with
retarded children.
Betty Ford had looked forward to her husband's retiring after
twenty-five years in Congress. She even made him promise to quit
politics after the next election. But that's all in the past
now. What kind of a First Lady will she make? Well, not an activist,
[3]
like Eleanor Roosevelt or Lady Bird Johnson. Perhaps a fashion
influence, like Jaqueline Kennedy. As gracious as Pat Nixon.
But more open, and it would appear more trusting, more willing
to take a chance.
Being the First Lady will perhaps restrict her from being
as candid as she has been in the past. I hope not. We met last
week at a small informal party, and we talked a bit, and I thanked
Mrs. Ford for being so open about her problems, and her marriage,
and her children. She was honest and straight, and I thought
meant a great deal to other women who also have day to day problems
and fears. Like her husband, Mrs. Ford seems to be of the people,
and that's very nice.
1
CBS
MEMORAN™
FROM: Suzanne St. Pierre
TO: DON HEWITT and MORLEY SAFER
DATE: July 2, 1975
Betty Bloomer Ford, as she appears today, is a strong, alive
and intelligent woman. She is open and candid and has a
sense of balance and humor about herself and her husband even
though he is President of the United States. This is blended
with obvious fondness and affection towards him.
She is an unusual First Lady. Not since Eleanor Roosevelt has
there been one who has spoken with such candor on political
issues. She has expressed her opinion about several controversial
subjects - the Equal Rights Amendment (the White House mail ran
heavily against her), abortion, marijuana, social mores, her
relationship with her husband, her views on psychiatry and her own
emotional condition. And no one can remember when a President's
wife has given a full-fledged White House press conference such as
the one Mrs. Ford gave last September.
She is also a traditional woman - in many ways the wife of a famous man.
She has raised her children to be a credit to herself and her husband =
who is still in love with her after all these years. One friend called
that not only smart, but practically brilliant. A religious woman, she
reads a scriptual passage every day.
She and her family are described again and again as normal, but in such
a way that "normal" sounds exotic. Perhaps she is no different from
a lot of good, strong, courageous American women - that she represents
the best of us - and that is what cheers us most - that we know there
are a lot of Betty Fords in America that help to keep us together and
give us strength as individuals, as families, as communities and as a
nation.
Reading about Betty Ford is very touching and inspiring - not for sad
reasons - but because she is a courageous woman who has not only sur-
vived the role of First Lady, but thrived on it. She has controlled
that role rather than it controlling her. One of our first glimpses of
her strength and openness was at the time of her breast operation. By
FORD
GERALO
DON HEWITT and MORLEY SAFER
July 2, 1975
Page 2
her behavior she took away the embarrassment and secrecy from what
until then many had regarded as almost a shameful social disease.
Possibly she used to be more retiring and self-effacing and not as
quick to be candid about controversial subjects. One senses this
from some of the earlier publicity on her. It did not define her as
easily or with such uniformity as the articles today do. Possibly
that impression was because of her manner of speaking which is
slow, hesitating and deliberate. Possibly we just didn't know her
and were wrong in our judgment. And possibly she has changed - blossomed-
felt more at ease to find herself and be herself. Betty Ford surprised us.
SSHP
GERAL
LIBRARY
Sample Biography #2
Aug. 7, 1975
MRS. GERALD R. FORD
The arts, the handicapped and equal opportunities for
women remain among the top priorities of Elizabeth (Betty)
Bloomer Ford as she begins her second year as First Lady.
First and foremost a devoted wife and mother, the wife
of the nation's 38th President also plans to continue her policy
of promoting American-made products in the White House and at
all state functions.
Wine from American vineyards will continue to be
served and native handicrafts, such as the wooden decoys and
handmade crystal which have provided unusual centerpieces at
recent state dinners will be featured.
Mrs. Ford recently summed up her own feelings about
being First Lady.
"I've had an active career, and the great advantage
of being a mother and raising four children. Now I have another
fulltime job seven days a week, 24 hours a day. I've had the
best of both worlds," she said.
Born Elizabeth Anne Bloomer on April 8, 1918, in
Chicago, Illinois, the First Lady moved to Grand Rapids, Michigan,
with her parents William and Hortense Bloomer when she was three
and graduated from high school there in 1936.
After two years as a modern dance major at the Bennington
School of Dance in Vermont, Mrs. Ford moved to New York where
she continued her dance training under Martha Graham, becoming
a member of the Martha Graham Concert Group. She also did part-
- 2 -
John Gardner (Jack) was born March 16, 1952. Jack lives
in the White House and has traveled extensively working
for the President's election. He graduated from Utah State
University at Logan, Utah, in 1975, with a major in forestry.
He is a former member of the U.S. Forest Service fire fighting
crew and a former park ranger with the National Park Service.
# # #
July 1, 1976
Office of the Press Secretary to Mrs. Ford
THE WHITE HOUSE
The First Family
President and Mrs. Gerald R. Ford are the parents of three sons
and a daughter. The Fords share an enthusiasm for sports, the
outdoors, and each other. Separated by different pursuits and
individual interests, the family gathers each Christmas for a
skiing vacation in Colorado and maintains close touch through
frequent calls and letters.
Michael Gerald (Mike) was born March 14, 1950. Mike and his wife,
the former Gayle Brumbaugh, live in Essex, Massachusetts, where
Mike is a student at Gordon-Cornwell Theological Seminary. Mike
plans to work with young people after completing his theological
studies. Gayle has a master's degree in social work and shares
Mike's interest in youth, particularly in counseling young people
and college students.
Steven Meigs (Steve) was born May 19, 1956. Steve is an animal
science major at California Polytechnic University and works
part-time on a ranch. Steve, who is learning how to raise horses,
also has tried rodeo-riding.
July 8-10, he will represent the President at the Calgary Exhibition
and Stampede in Alberta, Canada. Steve also worked three summers
on a ranch in Alaska, studied grizzly bears and worked on a cattle
ranch and dairy farm.
Susan Elizabeth (Susan) was born July 6, 1957. She just completed
her first year at Mount Vernon college in Washington, D.C. She
hopes to pursue her interest in photojournalism at the University
of Kansas next January. This fall, she plans to return to college
in Washington, D.C.
Susan has worked as a part-time photographer for the Associated
Press. Last summer, she studied with photographer Ansel Adams
and interned on the photographic staff of The Topeka Capital
Journal in Topeka, Kansas. Like her brothers, Susan is a skiing
enthusiast. She enjoys many other sports, including swimming and
tennis.
- 2 -
Her husband's confirmation as Vice President in 1973 brought new
responsibilities, which increased when he became President. As
First Lady, Mrs. Ford has shown her interest in American handicrafts
through unique centerpieces at State dinners and Christmas decora-
tions. Items from antique weathervanes to dolls have been used as
focal points for decorations.
Her commitment to equal rights has been demonstrated in her public
remarks and her open lobbying for more women in her husband's
administration. She has spoken with diverse groups from homemakers
to economists about the need for the Equal Rights Amendment.
During 1976, the First Lady also has been involved in various
Bicentennial events, including appearances in Philadelphia, Florida,
Arizona and the opening last week of an exhibit on women during the
Revolutionary era.
Mrs. Ford also has campaigned for her husband and recently attended
two state conventions on his behalf.
During the Ford Administration, numerous state visitors have been
entertained at the White House. Among recent guests were the
President of France and the King of Spain.
Two of the Ford children, Jack and Susan, live at the White House
with their parents.
Mrs. Ford was born on April 8, 1918, in Chicago, Illinois. Her
parents, Hortense and William Stephenson Bloomer, moved the family
to Grand Rapids, Michigan, when she was three.
#
#
#
July 1, 1976
Office of the Press Secretary to Mrs. Ford
THE WHITE HOUSE
Mrs. Gerald R. Ford
Since her husband became President in August, 1974, Mrs. Betty Ford
has been involved in activities promoting the arts, securing passage
of the Equal Rights Amendment and focusing attention on the prob-
lems of the handicapped.
Her strong interest in the arts comes from her own career as a
dancer. Mrs. Ford began studying dance at age eight in Grand Rapids,
Michigan. She studied and taught at a dance school there until
her graduation from high school in 1936. In the summers of 1936
and 1937, she attended the Bennington School of Dance in Vermont.
There she studied under Martha Graham, Doris Humphrey, Hanya Holm,
Charles Weidman and other well-known modern dance innovators. She
continued her dance career with Miss Graham in New York City,
eventually as a member of the Martha Graham Concert Group. (In
May, 1976, she returned to Bennington to dedicate the college's
arts center.)
In 1941, Mrs. Ford (then Betty Bloomer) returned to Grand Rapids
and became fashion coordinator for a department store. (Her strong
interest in American fashion was recognized by the Parsons School
of Design in March of this year, when she received the school's
annual award.) During her years as a fashion coordinator, she
formed her own dance group and taught dance to handicapped children.
On October 15, 1948, she married Gerald R. Ford. His election to
the U. S. House of Representatives from Michigan's 5th District
only a few weeks later meant a move to the Nation's Capital. The
Fords lived in Alexandria, Virginia from those first years until
they moved into the White House.
The Fords are the parents of three sons and one daughter. Most
of Mrs. Ford's energies during the 1950's and 1960's were focused
on her family, her church (Episcopal) and the political duties of
a Congressional wife.