Laura Bush
Laura Bush was born on November 4, 1946, in Midland, a city whose close-knit community formed the early backdrop of her life. A citizen of the United States, she grew up in a place where public institutions carried considerable weight in daily existence, a circumstance that would prove relevant to the professional directions she eventually pursued.
After attending Robert E. Lee High School in Midland, Bush continued her education at Southern Methodist University and later at the University of Texas at Austin. Those years of study led her into work as a teacher and a librarian, occupations that placed her at the intersection of learning and public service. She also worked as a writer, contributing to both autobiographical and children's writing, and over time took on the roles of politician and HIV/AIDS activist, extending her professional reach well beyond the classroom and the library.
Her public profile expanded when she became First Lady of Texas, a role she held from 1995 to 2000, drawing her into the broader currents of political life. From 2001 to 2009 she served as First Lady of the United States, a position that brought her work as an HIV/AIDS activist and her various other commitments to a national and international stage. In recognition of her contributions across these roles, she received the Library of Congress Living Legend award as well as The Nichols-Chancellor's Medal.
The facts list her occupation, among several, as president, a designation that signals how varied and difficult to categorize her career has been. A writer in multiple registers — autobiographical and aimed at younger readers — and a figure whose work moved through teaching, librarianship, political life, and activism, Bush has remained an active presence in American civic life. The Library of Congress Living Legend award stands as a concrete marker of a career that has moved across institutions and roles since those early years in Midland.
Quotes by Laura Bush
Laura Bush's insights on:
You know, there are a lot of would-be governors of Texas sitting around today who never took the opportunity to get into a race when the time was right.
When I was in my 20s, I was a bookworm – spent 12 hours of the day in the library. How I met George, I’ll never know.
Research shows us that children who are read to from a very early age are more likely to begin reading themselves at an early age. They’re more likely to excell in school. They’re more likely to graduate secondary school and go to college.
We must choose between a world of fear and a world of progress. We cannot stand by and do nothing while dangers gather.
Girls learn how to relate to men from the way their fathers love them. And if their fathers really love them and want the very best for them, then they’ve seen that kind of good behavior that they’d want in a husband.
Though my plans at the moment are vague, I can assure you that I’ll never run for the Senate in New York.
Well, we’ve faced very difficult decisions and challenges in our country, every one of us have, as we – since September 11th, as we fought the war on terror, all of those decisions that the President had to make to put young men and women in harm’s way.