U.S. first lady Michelle Obama
U.S. first lady Michelle Obama Reuters

U.S. First Lady Michelle Obama will fly to California to attend former first lady Betty Ford’s funeral on Tuesday, according to the White House.

The former President Gerald Ford's wife Betty Ford, 93, died of natural causes at Eisenhower Medical Center in Rancho Mirage last Friday. The nation started its public mourning for Ford today.

Ford's memorial service will be held at 11:30 a.m. on Tuesday at Saint Margaret Episcopal Church in Palm Desert. Besides Michelle Obama, another former First Lady Roselynn Carter, will also appear at the service. Carter is an intimate friend of Ford, and she will deliver one of the eulogies.

After the memorial service, Ford will lie in repose at the church from 5 p.m. PT to midnight. On Wednesday, Ford's remains will be flown to Michigan and will be laid to rest next to her husband at the Gerald R. Ford Museum in Grand Rapids on Thursday.