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[[Image:Newt Callista.jpg|thumb|Newt and Callista]]

[[Image:Newt Callista.jpg|thumb|Newt and Callista]]

Gingrich was born into a single-parent household with his mother, after his biological father abandoned the family. Robert Gingrich, a retired army officer, married GIngrich's mother and adopted him. <ref>http://www.nytimes.com/1996/11/21/us/robert-b-gingrich-speaker-s-father-71.html</ref> He has been married three times. His first wife, Jackie Battley, was his geometry teacher while he was in high school. They began their relationship when he was 16 years old, and married in 1962 after he graduated.<ref name="poli">[http://www.thepoliticalguide.com/Profiles/House/Georgia/Newt_Gingrich/Scandals/Marital_Affairs/ Newt Gingrich: Marital Affairs] poligu.com, retrieved January 22, 2012.</ref> The couple had two daughters, and divorced in 1981.  Liberal and mainstream media sources have perpetuated a myth for years Jackie was served with divorce papers "on her deatbed," however, she is very much alive.

Gingrich was born into a single-parent household with his mother, after his biological father abandoned the family. Robert Gingrich, a retired army officer, married Gingrich's mother and adopted him. <ref>http://www.nytimes.com/1996/11/21/us/robert-b-gingrich-speaker-s-father-71.html</ref> He has been married three times. His first wife, Jackie Battley, was his geometry teacher while he was in high school. They began their relationship when he was 16 years old, and married in 1962 after he graduated.<ref name="poli">[http://www.thepoliticalguide.com/Profiles/House/Georgia/Newt_Gingrich/Scandals/Marital_Affairs/ Newt Gingrich: Marital Affairs] poligu.com, retrieved January 22, 2012.</ref> The couple had two daughters, and divorced in 1981.  Liberal and mainstream media sources have perpetuated a myth for years Jackie was served with divorce papers "on her deatbed," however, she is very much alive.

Gingrich married Ginther in 1981. The couple separated in 1988, and reconciled in 1994.

Gingrich married Ginther in 1981. The couple separated in 1988, reconciled in 1994, and later divorced in 1999. In response to inquiries Gingrich publicly admitted to having an extra-marital relationship. "The honest answer is yes," Gingrich said in an interview with [[Focus on the Family]] founder [[James Dobson]]. "There are times that I have fallen short of my own standards. There's certainly times when I've fallen short of God's standards." Gingrich contrasted owning up to his shortcomings with [[President Clinton]]'s perjury and criminal offenses, "''The President of the United States got in trouble for committing a felony in front of a sitting federal judge''," the former Georgia congressman said of Clinton's 1998 House impeachment on perjury and [[obstruction of justice]] charges. "I drew a line in my mind that said, 'Even though I run the risk of being deeply embarrassed, and even though at a purely personal level I am not rendering judgment on another human being, as a leader of the government trying to uphold the rule of law, I have no choice except to move forward and say that you cannot accept ... perjury in your highest officials." <ref>[http://www.time.com/time/nation/article/0,8599,1597666,00.html?cnn=yes]</ref>

Newt Gingrich publicly admitted to having an extra-marital relationship. ""The honest answer is yes," Gingrich, a 2012 Republican presidential candidate, said in an interview with Focus on the Family founder [[James Dobson]]. "There are times that I have fallen short of my own standards. There's certainly times when I've fallen short of God's standards." Gingrich contrasted owning up to his shortcomings with President Clinton's perjury and criminal offenses, "''The President of the United States got in trouble for committing a felony in front of a sitting federal judge''," the former Georgia congressman said of Clinton's 1998 House impeachment on perjury and obstruction of justice charges. "I drew a line in my mind that said, 'Even though I run the risk of being deeply embarrassed, and even though at a purely personal level I am not rendering judgment on another human being, as a leader of the government trying to uphold the rule of law, I have no choice except to move forward and say that you cannot accept ... perjury in your highest officials." <ref>[http://www.time.com/time/nation/article/0,8599,1597666,00.html?cnn=yes]</ref>

Gingrich is co-founder along with his wife Callista, of the Gingrich Foundation, a charitable nonprofit corporation. Among its charitable contributions, the Gingrich Foundation has established the Newt and Callista Gingrich Scholarship at Luther College in Decorah, Iowa. Other grants have been awarded to the [[Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception]], [[American Museum of Natural History]], [[Arthritis Foundation]], [[Alzheimer’s Association]], [[Learning Makes a Difference Foundation]], [[Autism Society]], [[Catholic Charities USA]], [[American Heart Association]], [[Washington National Opera]], [[Wolf Trap Foundation]], City of Fairfax Band, Atlanta Ballet, Mount Vernon Ladies Association, Museum of the Rockies, [[Girl Scouts of the USA]], and the Trust for Public Land.

 

Gingrich serves as a Board Member of the [[Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation]] and has received the highest non-medical award the [[American Diabetes Association]]. In 1995 he was named Citizen of the Year by the [[March of Dimes]].<ref>http://www.gingrichproductions.com/about-us.html</ref>

== External links ==

== External links ==