>> this is a special report. clark gable had a line, there is nothing more wonderful for a man that to approach his own doorstep knowing someone on the other side of the door is listening for the sound of his foot steps. >> little did i dream i was not marrying an actor. >> i cannot imagine life without her. i am double lucky. i am lucky to have her and i am lucky because i know how much i am appreciated. >> celebrating nancy reagan, now reporting, george stephanopolis. >> good afternoon. we are celebrating the life of

nancy reagan one of the most influential first ladies in history, known for her grace, style and above all her single minded devotion to the 40th president, ronald reagan. the two married more than half a century. she died on sunday the at age of 94. she will be laid to rest today next to her husband at the ronald reagan presidential library. you can see the guests gathered for the funeral moments away and i am joined by barbara walters would knew both very well and invited to the funeral. what a love step. >> it was. it is nice that people turned out to be as devoted to her as they were. it was one of the from stories we knew about she said her most permit request for her funeral, george, was she be laid to rest as close as physically possible to the president so that when her cassette is lowered she will -- her cassette is lowered she will be next to him.

>> president george w. bush and secretary hillary clinton and laura bush, and ambassador kennedy, and presidential historian is here joining us. nancy reagan knew how to bring out the greatness in ronald reagan. many believe he would not be president if not for her. >> she saw his cast for greatness and threw his support around him doing everything she could to achieve his potential as a leader she knew he had vision that can toronto farm. >> the reverend from the national cathedral leading the procession of nancy reagan. into the funeral. >> the resurrection and the life of the of the lord he believes that in me though dead shall live and whoever lives and believes in me shall never die. i know that my redemocratter lives and will stand upon the

earth and although the somebody destroyed, yet i shall see god who i shall see for myself and not as a stranger. where none of us live to himself, and no man dies to himself. for if we live, we live unto the lord. if we die, we die unto the lord. whether we live there or die, we are the lord's. blessed are the dead who die and the lord even though said the spirit, for they rest from their slaves -- neighbors. >> and now the "battle hymn of the republic."

♪ the glory ♪ of the coming ♪ of the lord ♪ hallelujah ♪ hallelujah

♪ glory, glory ♪ hallelujah ♪ his truth is marching on ♪ his truth is marching on ♪ glory, glory ♪ hallelujah ♪ glory, hallelujah ♪ glory, glory ♪ hallelujah ♪ his truth is marching on

♪ marching on ♪ glory, glory ♪ hallelujah ♪ glory, glory ♪ hallelujah ♪ glory, glory ♪ hallelujah his truth is marching on ♪ ♪ glory, glory ♪ hallelujah ♪ glory, glory ♪ hallelujah ♪ glory, glory ♪ hallelujah ♪ his truth is marching on ♪ marchingen

the lord be with you. the first reading of ann peter son. >> a reading from the book of proverbs. when one finds a worthy wife, her value is far beyond pearls. her husband entrusting his heart to her has a prize.

she brings him good and not evil. all the days of her life. she on thes wool and flax and makes cloth with skill, like merchant ships she secures her provisions from afar and she rises while it is still night and distributes food to her household. she picks out a field to purchase out of her earnings, then she plant as vineyard. she has the strength and she has sturdy arms and enjoys the successes of her dealings. at night her large is undimmed. she puts her hand forward and the fingers by the spindle and reaches out her happens to the poor. she citizens her arms to the needy. she fears not the snow for her household all her charges are doubly clothed. she makes her own covers and

fine linen and purple clothing. her husband prominent at the city gates as he sits with the elders of the land. she makes garments and sells them. she is clothed with strength and dignity. she laughs at the days to. come she opens her mouth in wisdom. on her tongue is kindly counsel. she watches the conduct of her household. she eats not her food in idleness. her children rise up and praise her. her husband, too, extols her. many are the women of proven worth but you have excelled them all. charm is deceptive and beauty floating. the woman who fears the lord is to be praised. give her a reward of her labors and let her works praise her at the city gates. the word of the lord. >> thanks be to god. >> and that was mrs. reagan's

niece and we will hear from brian mulroney close friend of ronald reagan. he spoke at ronald reagan's funeral and now he will read a letter from ronald reagan to nancy reagan. in the spring of 1987, president reagan and i were driven into a large hangar at the ottawa air to await the arrival of mrs. reagan and my wife, prior to departure ceremonies for their return to washington following their highly successful state visit to canada president reagan and i were alone except for the security details. when their car drove in a moment later, out stepped nancy and

mila, my wife, looking like a million bucks. as they headed to us, president reagan beamed. he threw his arm around my shoulder and he said with a grin, you know, brian, for two irish men we sure married up. i mention this because it reflects a unique reagan reality, she really always was on his mind. we all know of his great love and admiration for nancy and the elegant and constant manner in which he publicly expressed it. one day at the white house after another absolutely glowing tribute by president reagan to his beloved nancy, i said, privately, you know, you are going to get me and all the rest

of us here in a whole lot of trouble with our wives. because we can't keep up with you. the president chuckled and looked at me with 9 irish twinkle and he said, well, brian, that's your problem, not mine. to illustrate this absolutely unique partnership and relationship, let me share with you today a letter he wrote to nancy on their first christmas together in the white house. on december 25, 1981. "dear mrs. "r" there are several much beloved women in my life and on christmas i should be giving they will gold and precious stones and perfume and furs and place. i know that even the best these would fall short of expressing

how much these several women mean to me and how empty my life would be without them. there is, of course, my first lady. she brings so much grace and charm to whatever she does that even stuffy formal functions sparkle and turn into fun times. everything is done with class. all i have to do is wash up and show up. there is another woman in my life who does things i don't always get to see but i hear about them, and sometimes see photos of her doing them. she takes a man and child in her arms in a hospital visit and the look on her face only the madonna could match and the look on the child's face is one of adoring. i know, because i adore her, too. she bends over a wheelchair or bed to touch an elderly invalid

with tenderness and compassion just as she fill my entire life with warmth and love. this is another gal i love who is a nest builder. she were stuck for throw days in a hotel room she would manage to make it home sweet home. she moves things around, looks at it, straightens this, straightens that and you wander why it wasn't like that in the first place. i'm also crazy about the girl would goes to the ranch with me, if we are cleaning up the woods she a powerhouse at pushing over dead trees. she is a wonderful person to sit by the fire with, or to ride with. or just to be with. when the sun goes down and the stars come out. if ever she stopped going to the ranch i would stop, too, because i would see her in every beauty spot there is. and i could not stand that.

then there is a sentimental lady i love, who lights up. but she loves to laugh and her laugh is like tinkling bells, i hear those bells and i feel good all over, even if i tell a joke she has heard many, many times before. fortunately, all these women in my life are you. fortunately for me that is, for there could be no life for me without you. browning asked, how do i love thee? let me count the ways. for me, there is no way to country, i love the whole gang of you, mommy, first lady, the sentiment am you, the fun you, and the peewee powerhouse you, merry christmas you all, with

all my love, lucky me." theirs was a love story for the ages, as first couple ron and nancy reagan represented america with from distinction. necessity had a magnificent sense of location. they had style. they had grace. they had class. some of you may have heard my reference to lines from william butler yates when talking in other circumstances and at what the reagans meant to us all. today, those same golden words tumble across count innocents and down the years as we thing of nancy reuniteed finally with her beloved ronnie, yates wrote "think where man's glory most begins and ends and say my glory

was that i had such friends." >> a testament for a loving country from faithful friend, canadian prime minister brian mulroney and now ava maria by martinez. ♪ ava maria

♪ ava maria

and now the second reading from a nephew of mrs. reagan, barton >> we do not want you to be unaware of those would have fallen asleep so you may not grieve like the rest who have no

hope. if we believe that jesus died and rose, so, too, will god, through jesus, bring with him those would have fallen asleep. indeed, we tell you this, on the word of the lord, that we who ae coming of the lord will surely not proceed those would have fallen asleep. the lord himself with the word of command, with a voice of an angel and the trumpet of god will come down from heaven. the dead in christ will rise first. we who are alive who are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the lord in the air. thus, we shall always be with the lord. therefore, condition sole one another with the words. the word of the lord. >> thanks be to god. >> gospel will now be read by our friend and colleague, diane sawyer who gave a well-known

interview after president reagan's illness death with mrs. reagan. they stayed in touch after of her life in california without him. >> thank you so much it is an honor and i am so grateful to be included today. i have been asked to say just a few words before i read a passage from the new testament for mrs. reagan so you may want to sit down. 15 years ago i interviewed her, long after the white house years and i does not know her then. our conversation was about the president and alzheimers and how you go on when every single day as someone said the size of the love is the size of the loss. when the interview was over we kept talking. i think iin'ed many of you here

in this room who checked in by point and came to los angeles to have the lunches with her. those lunches in which she ate microscopic amounts of food, little chopped salads and one chocolate chip cookie and the ice tea and i was so terrified of that i used to hide my role under the table and butter it so she could not see it. i did not want to offender but she was "bop," any journalist if she does not like a report you had done but unlike so many people these days she never seemed too hard definitions into definition but she was too interested in people and who you really were and what you really knew, all of us together in this hive. so we talk about politics and celebrities and she told very wicked stories about old

hollywood. the days when life would throw you a curb and you got up and put on your lipstick and combed your hair and you kept the band playing. i always thought of that old desert movie "morocco," describing a generation of women saying there is no foreign legion just for women but there is a foreign legion for women, too, they have no uniform, no flag, no metals when they are brave. as the lunch would end, she would make her way up the hill to the house with the memories and the silences and her happiness when the children were coming and all this week i have been thing about watching her head down the hall because she would head into the bedroom and right this i cannot remember exactly what it was, a pillow or a framed needlepoint but the words were clearly from president reagan and it said

something like this, if you must leave, could you just take me with you? i think of that, again, today, as i read what i have been asked to read, this passage, from the gospel of john. jesus said do not let your hearts be troubled, trust in god, trust, also, in me, if my father's house are many rooms, if it were not so i would have told you i am going to prepare a place for you. if i go and prepare a place for you i will come back and take you to be with me so you may be where i am. you know the way to the place where i am going. and thomas said, lord, we don't know where you are going how can we know the way? jesus answered, i am the way, and the truth and the life. no one comes to the father except through me.

for nancy, the word of the lord. >> thanks be to god. >> now the aequiem song by anna martinez. [ inaudible lyrics ]