Former First Lady Nancy Reagan has been remembered as her husband's closest adviser and a fierce protector.
She was right by President Ronald Reagan's side as he made the journey from actor to President of the United States.
Mrs. Reagan, a former actress herself, died Sunday at her home of congestive heart failure.
She was 94 years old. She and President Reagan were married for 52 years until his death in 2004.
“There are numerous stories about how she privately urged the president to act as this counter-balance to what the Soviet Union was in the world but to also be there to reach out to them, and she believed that we could solve the Cold War in a peaceful manner and ultimately we did,” said Brent Leatherwood, Tennessee GOP Executive Director.
The Tennessee Republican Party released a statement following her death:
"Many gifted women have served our nation as First Lady but Nancy Reagan set a new standard during her time at the White House. She brought grace and charm to the role and used her position to make our nation a better place. Mrs. Reagan was, in many ways, the driving force behind President Reagan and many of his achievements. Her loss isn't just one for the Republican Party. It is a loss that will be felt by all of America."
U.S. Senator and former Tennessee Governor Lamar Alexander also released the following statement:
"Nancy Reagan stayed overnight with us at the governor's residence—Honey and I saw her often during the Reagan presidency. She was always thoughtful and elegant and devoted to her husband and to our country."
