Presidential Bucket List
Many adults have a bucket list of things they want to experience or accomplish, or places to visit. My mother, Ann Wilson, born in 1941, set a goal for herself to see the presidential museum, library, birthplace, or memorial site of all of the presidents of her lifetime. This past week, my mom completed her lofty goal. We traveled to Grand Rapids, Michigan, to visit the Gerald R. Ford Presidential Museum.
My mom has always had an interest in history and enjoys reading books of many genres. A,s a child, she preferred history-based books. I remember when we went on weeks-long car trips in the 80s, she would read aloud books to my brothers and me like Johnny Tremain set in the Revolutionary War, Caddie Woodlawn, about a pioneer girl, and other Newberry Medal-winning novels.
On a family vacation to Vermont, as a child, my mom recalls her family driving to Mount Vernon, Virginia, to visit George Washington’s former residence, as well as the Franklin D. Roosevelt Presidential Library and Museum in Dutchess County, New York. On the way back to Iowa, they stopped in Springfield, Illinois, to tour Abraham Lincoln’s Presidential Library and Museum. After my brothers and I were out of college, she decided to take some time for herself and began working towards completing her bucket list.
With only one president to go, we decided to head to Michigan last week. The drive to Grand Rapids was pretty smooth with an anticipated slowdown around the Chicago area. As we drove into the city, we were greeted with a gorgeous view of downtown. The tall buildings were gleaming in the sunlight.
The Ford Presidential Museum is situated next to the scenic Grand River, with the burial site of President Ford and Betty Ford nearby. The open and airy two-story building is filled with historic relics, personal mementos, official documents, and many photographs. This was my first visit to a Presidential Museum, and I was impressed by the number of individual items and pictures preserved over the years. We started our self-guided tour with a short film in the plush theater, followed by an exhibit chronicling Ford’s childhood, including a name change from Leslie Lynch King Jr. to Gerald Rudolph Ford Jr. after his stepfather adopted him.
Our 38th President, who went by “Jerry,” was an Eagle Scout, an accomplished student and athlete who turned down offers to play professional football to attend Yale Law School. He served in the US Naval Reserve and the US Navy and was a flight instructor. He was undoubtedly a well-rounded individual.
We took our time exploring each room to see the exhibits and read the interactive displays. Along the way, we stopped to watch each of the short videos containing footage of Ford’s life at home, including his wife, children, and dogs, the Watergate scandal, his international travels to visit world leaders, the campaign trail for reelection, the two assassination attempts, and his inspirational speeches.
“At my stage in life, one is inclined to think less about dates on the calendar than those things that are timeless – about leadership and service and patriotism and sacrifice and about doing one’s best in meeting every challenge that life presents.”
Gerald R. Ford
The final part of our visit to the museum was a stroll along the Grand River to the burial site of President Gerald R. Ford and his wife, Elizabeth Bloomer Ford.
My mom’s bucket list is complete - for now. However, with the anticipated opening of The Obama Presidential Center slated for the spring of 2026, it looks like we have another road trip coming up.
What a cool bucket list. A friend of mine would travel to these with his dad, I don't know if his dad had any specific logic to which he wanted to see but it was a cool thing they did together. I've only been to two: Hoover and Carter. Gotta do some work to catch up with your mom.
Thank you for the smiles this evening.