6:54 AM PT -- Barack just posted about her death, saying, "My family and I are mourning the loss of our beloved grandmother, Sarah Ogwel Onyango Obama, affectionately known to many as “Mama Sarah” but known to us as “Dani” or Granny. We will miss her dearly, but we’ll celebrate with gratitude her long and remarkable life."
My family and I are mourning the loss of our beloved grandmother, Sarah Ogwel Onyango Obama, affectionately known to many as “Mama Sarah” but known to us as “Dani” or Granny. We will miss her dearly, but we’ll celebrate with gratitude her long and remarkable life. pic.twitter.com/avDY4f1PVu
— Barack Obama (@BarackObama) March 29, 2021
Former President Barack Obama's grandmother has died at the age of 99 after a brief illness.
Sarah Ogwel Onyango Obama's daughter shared the news Monday, saying her mother had died at a hospital in the city of Kisumu in Kenya ... a family spokesperson shared that Mama Sarah had been sick for a week, but did not die of COVID-19.
The matriarch of the Obama family and second wife of Barack's grandfather, Mama Sarah was passionate about raising money to educate girls and orphans in Kenya. She even had a foundation that fed and educated children who lost their parents.
Mama Sarah became somewhat of a celebrity in Africa during Obama's time in The White House, even attending his inauguration in 2009. In his memoir, Barack referred to her as "Granny" and referenced a trip when he met her in the '80s ... he also mentioned her during his 2014 speech at the U.N. General Assembly.
Kenyan President, Uhuru Kenyatta, released a statement on Mama Sarah's death, saying, "The passing away of Mama Sarah is a big blow to our nation. We've lost a strong, virtuous woman. A matriarch who held together the Obama family and was an icon of family values."
RIP
Originally published -- 6:15 AM PT