[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 150 (2004), Part 9]
[Senate]
[Pages 12142-12143]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                   TRIBUTE TO RONALD AND NANCY REAGAN

  Mr. LEAHY. Mr. President, we have come to the close of several days 
of tribute to our late President, Ronald Reagan. So much has been said 
about President Reagan's buoyant spirit and about the contributions he 
made to our Nation, and these tributes have helped millions of 
Americans with the healing process that comes with the death of so 
popular and beloved a leader.
  Though much has already been said about President Reagan, I do want 
to pay special tribute today to our former First Lady, Nancy Reagan.
  For me--and, I suspect, for millions of other Americans--some of the 
most stirring images of this memorable week have been of Nancy Reagan 
and her family. We saw again, and so clearly, her strength, her 
compassion and her deep love for her husband.
  Ever since President Reagan's deeply moving announcement to his 
fellow citizens and to the world that he was suffering from Alzheimer's 
disease, I have watched Mrs. Reagan conduct herself with compassion, 
loyalty, competence and caring that have been an inspiration to the 
thousands of family members who every day struggle to cope with loved 
ones suffering from this disease or from any of the long variety of 
other disorders that can come upon us in our older ages--and sometimes 
far earlier than that.
  The Alzheimer's Association estimates that 4.5 million Americans 
today suffer from this debilitating disease. Often, family members and 
especially, spouses--end up as primary caregivers to their partners or 
other family members. Along with the emotional pain and heartbreak of 
watching the mind of a loved one slowly fade away, many caregivers are 
ill-equipped to handle the many facets of the illness that present 
themselves over the duration of this mental and physical struggle. 
Their own physical health suffers. Managing a job or any other activity 
outside the home becomes almost impossible.

[[Page 12143]]

  I believe Nancy Reagan is an inspiration to so many Americans. The 
love that she and her husband so clearly showed to each other comforted 
and sustained their marriage in sickness, as it did in health.
  Marcelle and I extend our best wishes to Mrs. Reagan and to the 
entire Reagan family.

                          ____________________