Bush 41, Barbara to receive Mensch Award for service to Jewish community

HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) -- The Mensch International Foundation presented George H. W. and Barbara Bush with its annual Mensch Award for their service to the Jewish community.

The ceremony took place Wednesday morning at Congregation Beth Israel in Houston.

"President Bush has been particularly supportive of world Jewry, such as when he played a pivotal role in the evacuation of some 14,000 Jews from Ethiopia during that country's civil war in the late 1980s," the society said in a news release. "He was also a leader in providing support to newly independent Poland and Hungary after the fall of the Iron Curtain in 1989."

PHOTOS: The Bushes through the years

1 of 49

George Bush is shown with wife Barbara in 1945. (AP Photo)

AP

If you're viewing on our ABC13 news app, tap on the photo above to see more images.

The society also recognized Barbara Bush for being "the anchor to her husband and therefore equally deserving of recognition."