- Jeff Dwire
George Jefferson "Jeff" Dwire (
June 6 ,1923 –January , 1974) was anArkansas small businessman and the third husband ofVirginia Clinton Kelley , [ [http://www.cassidyfamilyassociation.org/html/grpf2775.html Jeff Dwire & Virginia Dell Cassidy] ] and the stepfather of former Americanpresident Bill Clinton and ofRoger Clinton .Hillary Clinton, " [http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,457362-2,00.html Hillary Unbound] ," "TIME" (Sunday, Jun. 08, 2003).]Early life
He was born in
Bodcaw, Arkansas . A veteran ofWorld War II , Dwire was injured during aparachute jump and had later worked as acarpenter . He had worked his way through college as a hairdresser. [Emily Toth, "Bringing up Billy: Review of "Leading with My Heart: My Life"," "The Women's Review of Books" XII.I (October 1994): 27.] Other occupations and avocations included playing football, teachingjudo , building homes, and selling oil-well equipment and securities.Marriage
Dwire, who had three daughters from a previous marriage, met Kelley when she patronized the
beauty salon he owned. [" [http://www.cnn.com/ALLPOLITICS/1996/candidates/democrat/clinton/clinton.family.shtml The Clinton Family Bio] ," "cnn.com".] They married on 3 January 1969 inHope, Arkansas ; the ceremony was performed by the Rev. John Miles, and Bill Clinton served as the best man. He also played and sang at the reception and earlier watched the Chicago Democratic convention on television with Dwire. [" [http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2004/07/07/opinion/main627962.shtml Cliffs Notes For Clinton's Book: The Ultimate Abridgement Of My Life] ," "CBS News" (July 7, 2004).] Family and friends of the bride discouraged the union because Dwire was an ex-convict, having served nine months in prison in 1962 for stock fraud.Dwire and the Clinton Family
Hillary Clinton , then Hillary Rodham, described Dwire as a "supportive ally" in her attempts to forge a relationship with Bill Clinton's mother while Rodham was dating the future president. Hillary Clinton, " [http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,457362-2,00.html Hillary Unbound] ," "Time magazine" (Sunday, Jun. 08, 2003).] He also counseled Clinton concerning the draft, decisions involving which would become a major issue in his presidential campaign.First In His Class : A Biography Of Bill Clinton, David Maraniss, Random House, 1996, ISBN-13|978-0684818900]Since Dwire and his new wife married later in life, the prospects of having children together were not favorable. At that time, Clarice Minner, their young babysitter and housekeeper, became pregnant with her second child. On October 12, 1969, with Virginia Dwire at her side as the anesthesiologist, she gave birth to a little girl. She named her daughter "Jeffrey" Lynn Smith as a sign of adoration to the couple.
Death
Dwire died in 1974 of complications of
diabetes . [fullon, [http://www.blurtit.com/q237182.html When Was Bill Clinton's Mother Born And Can You Tell Me A Bit About Her?] (10 May 2007).]Legacy
A 1967 Ford Mustang that he bought played a role in the 1992 presidential campaign and was a favorite nostalgia item of Bill Clinton. It is currently on display at the Museum of Automobiles [ [http://museumofautos.com/cars_on_exhibit.htm Cars on Exhibit] ] in Arkansas.
url=http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9C03E1D81731F93BA25757C0A962958260 |quote=Mr. Clinton's car, with its white interior, simulated side vents, automatic transmission and a six-cylinder convert|120|hp engine, was bought in 1972 by his stepfather, Jeff Dwire, as a gift for the President's younger brother, Roger, who was 16, but Mr. Clinton bought it from his brother several years later. |publisher=New York Times |date=April 18 ,1994 |accessdate=2008-03-02 ]The Clinton family's housekeeper at the time Clarice Minner Hay, who was expecting a child, had so much admiration for the family that she named her daughter after Jeff. Her child subsequently became Jeffery Lynn Smith. Sadly enough Jeffery went missing three weeks before Christmas in 1985 while walking home from school in Hot Springs, Arkansas. She was 15 years old. [http://www.geocities.com/murray222@prodigy.net/Lynnspage.html] [http://youtube.com/watch?v=I4Ib1qYusxI] [http://arkansasmatters.com/media_player.php?media_id=62061#]
References
Further reading
* Clinton, Bill. "My Life", Knopf (June 22, 2004). ISBN-10|0-375-41457-6
* Kelley, Virginia. "Leading with My Heart" (with James Morgan), Pocket, ISBN-10|0671522957, ISBN-13|978-0671522957
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