Remembering Reagan 1911 - 2004

On February 6, 1911, Ronald Wilson Reagan, what would soon to become United States 40th president, was born to Nelle and John Reagan in Tampico, Illinois. He attended high school at Dixon High, where he played football, worked as a lifeguard, and acted in school plays. He attended college at Eureka University, where he studied economics and sociology. After graduation, he became a radio sports announcer. Within 20 years, he appeared in 53 films.

Ronald Reagan had been married twice. His first wife, actress Jane Wyman, beared two children with Reagan, Maureen and Michael. Maureen died from brain cancer in 2001. His second wife, actress Nancy Davis, also beared two children with Reagan, Patricia Ann and Ronald Prescott.

In 1966, Ronald Reagan was elected Governor of California and was re-elected in 1970. Reagan won the Republican Presidential nomination in 1980. The United States announced the 40th president, Ronald Reagan. Reagan won 489 electoral votes over Preaident Jimmy Carter's 49. In 1986, Reagan obtained an overhaul of the income tax code, which eliminated many deductions and exempted millions of citizens with low incomes.

Reagan was the oldest manever to become President of the United States. He was an avid church-goer where he practiced the Presbyterian faith. His nickname all through school was "Dutch".

In 1994, Reagan announced that he was suffering from Alzheimers disease. The last few years were painful for his family, as he could not even carry on a conversation with them, did not remember them at time, and stayed in out of the hospital. The man known as the "Great Communicator", died at his home in the Bel Air district of Los Angeles at the age of 93 with Mrs. Reagan and his children at his side. Ronald Reagan Jr. and Patricia Ann Davis were with him on that day. It is still unclear whether or not Michael Reagan was present at the time of his father's death.

Reagan's daughter Patricia wrote,

"At the last moment, when his breathing told us this was it, he opened his eyes and looked straight at my mother. Eyes that hadn't opened for days did, and they weren't chalky or vague. They were clear and blue and full of love. If a death can be lovely, his was."

Ronald Reagan has gone. But his legacy lives on. All that Reagan was, all that he did, all that he lived for, should be forever remembered. Now, more than ever, it is important that we remember the legacy that has been passed on to the current generation of frat boy who resides in the White House. He has handed the torch on to a younger generation, a generation that carries on his legacy in grand style.Some of Ronald Reagan's famous quotes are still alive in us today.

"Abortion is advocated only by persons who have themselves been born." _Ronald Reagan

"All great changes in America begins at the dinner table."_Ronald Reagan

"Don't be afraid to see what you see."_Ronald Reagan

"Freedom is never more than one generation away from extinction. We didn't pass it to our children in the bloodstream. It must be fought for, protected, and handed on for them to do the same, or one day we will spend our sunset years telling our children and our children's children what it was once like in the Unites States where men were free."_Ronald Reagan

"Freedom is one of the deepest and noblest aspirations of the human spirit."_Ronald Reagan

I know in my heart that man is good. That what is right will always eventually triumph. And there's purpose and worth to each and every life."_Ronald Reagan

"People don't start wars, governments do."_Ronald Reagan

"The government's view of the economy could be summed up in a few short phrases: if it moves, tax it. If it keeps moving, regulate it. If it stops moving, subsidize it."_Ronald Reagan

"The nine most terrifying words in the English language are, "I'm from the government and I'm here to help.""_Ronald Reagan

"I now have absolute proof that smoking even one
marijuana cigarette is equal in brain damage to being
on Bikini Island during a hydrogen bomb blast"_Ronald Reagan

'To sit back hoping that someday, someway, someone will make things right is to go on feeding the crocodile, hoping he will eat you last--but he will eat you."_Ronald Reagan

"Whatever else history may say about me when I'm gone, I hope it will record that I appealed to your best hopes, not your worst fears; to your confidence rather than your doubts. My dream is that you will travel the road ahead with liberty's lamp guiding your steps and opportunity's arm steadying your way."_Ronald Reagan