Cindy McCain Accompanies Husband’s Casket to D.C.: PHOTOS

Cindy McCain, the widow of the late Senator John McCain, accompanied her husband’s body back to Washington D.C., where he spent so many of his political years.

McCain’s widow was accompanied by her seven children: Jack and Jimmy in their military uniforms; Bridget; Meghan; Sidney; Douglas and Andrew. The McCain family stepped off the plane bearing McCain’s casket to the sight of a military honor guard.

The family and former POW’s remains were met in D.C. by Defense Secretary James Mattis and members of McCain’s Senate staff. Mattis stepped forward to escort McCain’s widow.

McCain will lie in state at the U.S. Capitol on Friday, August 31, 2018, and then a memorial service will be held at the Washington National Cathedral on Saturday. John McCain will be buried at the U.S. Naval Academy on Sunday.

Here’s what you need to know:

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Cindy Wrote That Her ‘Heart Is Broken’ Following Her Husband’s Death

Cindy has not said much publicly since her husband died. However, she did tweet the following: “My heart is broken. I am so lucky to have lived the adventure of loving this incredible man for 38 years. He passed the way he lived, on his own terms, surrounded by the people he loved, in the the place he loved best.”

She also wrote, “The entire McCain family is overwhelmed by the outpouring of love and support from around the world. Thank you” and “I love my husband with all of my heart. God bless everyone who has cared for my husband along this journey.”

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Cindy’s Name Was Floated as a Possible Replacement for Her Husband in the U.S. Senate

Cindy McCain’s name has made lists of potential replacements to assume her husband’s Senate seat. Arizona’s Republican governor will appoint a person to serve out John McCain’s term. However, Cindy McCain has not commented on the possibility, and the governor hasn’t given any hints about whom he might pick. Politics was set aside during days of memorials and honors in John McCain’s memory.

Cindy is a wealthy woman in her own right who is involved in philanthropic causes. U.S. Senator John McCain was a very wealthy man when he died, but most of his money derived from his wife, Cindy, who is the heiress to a beer fortune.

John McCain was with his wife, Cindy, and his family when he died, according to a statement from his office. Cindy McCain was John McCain’s second wife. He was previously married to Carol Shepp McCain, who faithfully waited for him during the years he was a POW in Vietnam. Three of the McCain children – Sidney, Andrew, and Douglas – are McCain’s children with Carol.

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Cindy McCain’s Wealth Derives From Her Family’s Beer Distribution Company

Cindy McCain’s net worth in 2018 was placed at $300 million by Celebrity Net Worth. Much of that wealth comes from her family’s beer distribution company, Hensley & Co, for which she serves as Chairwoman.

McCain, 81 when he died, announced on July 19, 2017 that he had a brain tumor known as a glioblastoma. He spent his entire life in public service, first serving in the Navy for 22 years (and spending five of those years as a Vietnamese prisoner of war). He has served in Congress since 1982.

Cindy inherited a “Phoenix beer distributorship that is worth hundreds of millions of dollars,” reported The New York Times.

The Times reported that Cindy’s father started the business, Hensley & Company, “a half-century ago,” and it was the “exclusive wholesaler of Budweiser, Bud Light, and other Anheuser-Busch products in the Phoenix area.” The newspaper reported that the company was the third largest Anheuser-Busch distributor in the United States.

Cindy owns 34 percent of the company and, with her children and other family members, controls 2/3rds of the company’s stock, reported The Times.

According to NPR, “The company, which distributes brands including Bud Light and Budweiser” had a “60 percent share of the Phoenix market and had $370 million in revenues” one recent year.

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Cindy & John McCain Met In Hawaii & Photos Captured Cindy Resting Her Head on Her Husband’s Casket

Before she accompanied his body back to D.C., Cindy McCain attended another memorial service for the late senator in Arizona. She was photographed lovingly placing her head on his casket.

The couple met when Cindy was 25. “Cindy Hensley met John McCain more than 20 years earlier at a party in Hawaii. He was a 43-year-old naval officer, married at the time. She was 25,” a 2008 NPR story read.

John McCain initially worked for his father-in-law and then ran for Congress with loans from Cindy, reports NPR.

 

Three of the couple’s children followed their father, the son of an Admiral, into military service. Jimmy McCain, one of McCain’s two sons with Cindy, served in Iraq and Afghanistan.