Michelle Obama’s mum, Marian Robinson ‘died peacefully’ at age 86

Marian Robinson, the mother of former US First Lady Michelle Obama, has died at 86.
In a statement, her family said that Robinson had died “peacefully” on Friday morning.

Robinson was a well-known fixture at the White House during the eight years of Barack Obama’s administration between 2009 and 2017.

She spent much of that time taking care of her two granddaughters, Malia and Sasha, daughters to Michelle and Barack Obama.

In a statement posted on social media, Mrs Obama called her mother her “rock, always there for whatever I needed”.

“She was the same steady backstop for our entire family, and we are heartbroken to share she passed away today,” she wrote

In a separate post, Mr Obama said that “there was and will be only one Marian Robinson.

“In our sadness, we are lifted up by the extraordinary gift of her life,” he added. “And we will spend the rest of ours trying to live up to her example.

No further details were given about the cause of death.