Former first lady Barbara Bush is in “failing health” and won’t seek additional medical treatment, a Bush family spokesman said Sunday. “Following a recent series of hospitalizations, and after consulting her family and doctors, Mrs. Bush, now age 92, has decided not to seek additional medical treatment and will instead focus on comfort care,” spokesman Jim McGrath said in a news release. McGrath did not elaborate as to the nature of Bush’s health problems. She has been treated for decades for Graves’ disease, which is a thyroid condition. Bush is one of only two first ladies who was also the mother of a president. The other was Abigail Adams, wife of John Adams and mother of John Quincy Adams. She married George H.W. Bush in 1945. They had six children and have been married longer than any presidential couple in American history. Eight years after she and her husband left the White House, Mrs. Bush stood with her husband as their son George W. was sworn in as president. Her husband, 94, also has had health issues in recent years. In April 2017, he was released from a hospital in Houston after being treated for two weeks for a mild case of pneumonia and chronic bronchitis. Months earlier, he was at Houston’s Methodist Hospital for 16 days, also for pneumonia. Bush, who served as president from 1989 to 1993, has a form of Parkinson’s disease and uses a motorized scooter or a wheelchair for mobility. He also served as a congressman, CIA director and Ronald Reagan’s vice president.
Beyonce has paid tribute Saturday to historically black colleges and universities and also reunited with Destiny’s Child during her headlining performance at Coachella. Beyonce performed a two-hour set of her hits in Indio, Calif., where the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival is held each year. The superstar was due to perform last year but had to postpone because she was pregnant with her twins, Sir and Rumi. Her return did not disappoint the audience with a rousing set, including paying tribute to the marching bands, the dance troupes and step teams at historically black colleges and universities. She even performed “Lift Every Voice and Sing,” known as the national black anthem. Kelly Rowland and Michelle Williams also joined her as they sang their smash “Say My Name,” and husband Jay-Z also came out for a collaboration. Beyonce is due to return for her second performance as Coachella returns for its second run next weekend.