Former first lady Laura Bush's mother Jenna Welch dies in Texas at 99
President George W. Bush and his wife Laura Bush (C) and mother-in-law Jenna Welch (L) watch their dog Barney on the South Lawn of the White House upon arrival 28 October, 2001 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Manny Ceneta/Getty Images)
MIDLAND, Texas (FOX 26) - Jenna Welch, the mother of former first lady Laura Bush, has died in Texas. She was 99.
Welch, a longtime Midland, Texas, resident died Friday, according to Laura Bush. Bush remembered her mom with an Instagram post on Mother’s Day calling her a “true daughter of West Texas who loved her family, books and nature.”
“My memories of reading with her and stargazing under the Midland sky are reminders of the passions that she nurtured in me. Our family is grateful for her long and wonderful life. We miss her dearly,” Bush wrote.
Born on July 24, 1919, in Little Rock, Arkansas, Welch was raised near El Paso, Texas. She and her husband, Harold Welch, moved to Midland in 1946 after he returned from serving in World War II. Harold Welch died in 1995.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.