Nancy Walker Bush Ellis | |
|---|---|
| Born | Nancy Walker Bush February 4, 1926 Milton, Massachusetts, U.S. |
| Died | January 10, 2021(2021-01-10) (aged 94) Concord, Massachusetts, U.S. |
| Education | Vassar College |
| Political party | Republican (1988–2021) Democratic (before 1988) |
| Spouse | |
| Children |
|
| Parent(s) | Prescott Bush Dorothy Walker |
| Relatives | George H. W. Bush (brother) George W. Bush (nephew) Jeb Bush (nephew) |
| Family | Bush |
Nancy Walker Bush Ellis (February 4, 1926 – January 10, 2021) was an American environmentalist and political campaigner. She was theonly sister of former U.S. PresidentGeorge H. W. Bush, and aunt of both former PresidentGeorge W. Bush and the former governor of FloridaJohn Ellis Bush.
Nancy Walker Bush was born on February 4, 1926, inMilton, Massachusetts, toPrescott Sheldon Bush (1895–1972) and Dorothy Wear Walker Bush (1901–1992). She had four brothers (one wasGeorge H. W. Bush) and became a champion tennis player and athlete in her youth. She was educated at the private school Rosemary Hall inGreenwich (nowChoate Rosemary Hall in Wallingford) andMiss Porter's School inFarmington. She graduated fromVassar College with a degree in English in 1946.[1]
On October 26, 1946, at St. Paul's Church in Greenwich, she married Alexander Ellis Jr. (1922–1989), an executive with insurance firm Fairfield & Ellis (which merged into Corroon & Black,[2] now a part ofWillis Group Holdings Ltd.). The couple's wedding guests includedJames L. Buckley,John V. Lindsay,John Chafee, and Nancy's brother George;Office of Strategic Services agentWilliam B. Macomber Jr. was best man.[3] Together, they had four children: a daughter, Nancy Walker Ellis Black, and three sons,Alexander,John, andJosiah.[1] The family lived inConcord, Massachusetts before she moved toBeacon Hill after her husband's death.[1]
Although she had been a liberalDemocrat and anenvironmentalist who activelyfundraised for theNAACP and co-chaired the New England section of theNAACP Legal Defense Fund,[4] she joined theRepublican Party in 1988 when her brother ran for president.[5] In September 2004, whenher nephew was running for reelection, she visitedLondon,Paris[6] andFrankfurt[7] on behalf ofRepublicans Abroad in an effort to encourageRepublicans living in Europe to register and vote.[8]
Ellis long volunteered with theBoston United South End Settlement House, of which she was an honorary director.[9] She also volunteered with theNew England Medical Center,[10] theBoston Symphony Orchestra, and theNew England Conservatory of Music.[11]
As a board member of theMassachusetts Audubon Society,[4] an organization that was critical of the George W. Bush administration's widespread encouragement ofindustry self-regulation,[12] Ellis led fundraising efforts[4] to establishBelize'sRio Bravo Conservation and Management Area[13] and the environmental conservation programProgramme for Belize.[13] She was also a member of the nongovernmental organizationPact.[4]
Ellis was hospitalized on December 30, 2020, with a fever and subsequently tested positive forCOVID-19 amid theCOVID-19 pandemic in Massachusetts. She died at an assisted living facility inConcord, Massachusetts, on January 10, 2021, one month shy of her 95th birthday.[14]
