Latin School of Chicago

Nancy Davis Reagan '39 I awakened this morning to the news that Nancy Reagan had passed away. In many ways, she was an extraordinary woman who was the wife of an extraordinary man. She was a very generous person for whom anyone was lucky to have worked. I had the honor to get to know Mrs. Reagan when I worked under Michael Deaver, who was the Chief of Staff for then-Gov. Ronald Reagan, and years later on the campaign trail and in the White House. During this period, I was fortunate to be in many meetings with Mrs. Reagan, both official and social. The first time we met, I told her that I grew up in the same building as she, (209 E. Lake Shore Drive), and that I had attended the same school: Latin! From that moment on, she referred to me as her 'classmate' and she graciously made a point of introducing me to many politicians and dignitaries. She personally asked me to be in the advance party for a staff event at Atoka Farms, the Virginia estate of Sen. John Warner and his wife, Elizabeth Taylor. Mrs. Reagan was a true lady, and even her political enemies admired her love and loyalty to her partner-in-life, Ronald Reagan." – Susan Harrington Grove '70 As alumna Susan Harrington Grove shared recently, our community was saddened to hear of the passing of former First Lady Nancy Davis Reagan '39, on March 6. Mrs. Reagan lived an extraordinary life, and even during her early years as a student at Latin School, she was appreciated for her grace and poise. Mrs. Reagan enrolled at the girls school in fifth grade and graduated in 1939. As a student, she played hockey, sang in the glee club, held numerous leadership positions in her class and the student government, and appeared in many theater productions, including as the First Lady in the 1939 senior production of e First Lady. According to her senior yearbook: "Nancy's social perfection is a constant source of amazement. She is invariably becomingly and suitably dressed. She can talk, and even better listen intelligently, to anyone from her little kindergarten partner of the Halloween party, to the grandmother of one of her friends. Even in the seventh grade, when we first began to mingle with the male of the species, Nancy was completely poised. While the rest of us huddled self-consciously on one side of the room, casting surreptitious glances at the men, aged thirteen, opposite us, Nancy actually crossed the yawning emptiness separating the two groups and serenely began a conversation – with a boy." After Latin, Mrs. Reagan went on to Smith College and then worked as an actress in stage, film and television productions before meeting and marrying Ronald Reagan. In 1967 she became the First Lady of California and in 1981 the First Lady of the United States when Ronald Reagan became President. When she left the White House in 1989, Mrs. Reagan established the Nancy Reagan Foundation, with the goal of educating people about the dangers of substance abuse. For the 10 years prior to President Reagan's passing in 2004, she devoted herself to caring for her husband at home as he battled Alzheimer's disease. Following his death, she focused on projects related to the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library in Simi Valley, California, where she served on the board of the Ronald Reagan Presidential Foundation. One of our fondest memories of Mrs. Reagan was when she visited the lower school in 1982, during Latin's centennial. Mrs. Reagan spent the morning with the third graders, answered questions, attended a student production, and even went through the lunch line in the lower school cafeteria. Her office was most recently in touch with Latin in 2013, when she sent a lovely note congratulating the school on its 125th year. Our condolences go out to Mrs. Reagan's, family and loved ones, including her brother, Dr. Richard A. Davis '43. Latin Magazine » Spring 2016 39

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