Marian Robinson, Michelle Obama's Mother Passed at Age 86

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Marian Robinson, the beloved mother of former first lady Michelle Obama, died at the age of 86, her family announced Friday.

WASHINGTON, DC – DECEMBER 15: U.S. President Barack Obama and first lady Michelle Obama, along with daughters Malia (left) and Sasha, sing during the finale of TNT’s “Christmas in Washington” on December 15, 2013 in Washington, DC. The program benefits the Children’s National Health System. Also shown are the president’s mother-in-law, Marian Robinson, and the program’s host, actor Hugh Jackman. (Photo by Martin H. Simon-Pool/Getty Images)

“She passed peacefully this morning, and right now, none of us are quite sure how exactly we’ll move on without her,” the statement read.

Marian was born in 1937 and grew up on Chicago’s South Side, one of seven children. She trained as a teacher before working as a secretary. She married Fraser Robinson, and they had two children together, Michelle and Craig Robinson. Fraser died in 1991.

WASHINGTON, DC – NOVEMBER 27: (AFP OUT) First lady Michelle Obama’s mother Marian Robinson joins the first family in helping pack and distribute bags of food to needy children and seniors at the Capital Area Food Bank November 27, 2013 in Washington, DC. According to the White House, the first family was joined by family and friends and members of The Mission Continues, “an organization of post-9/11 veterans who are awarded community service fellowships.” (Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

When her son-in-law, former President Barack Obama, won the presidency in 2008, she was asked by the family into leaving Chicago and moving into the White House.

“We needed her,” the family’s statement read Friday. “The girls needed her. And she ended up being our rock through it all.”

In a 2018 interview with “CBS Mornings” alongside her daughter, she described the move as a “huge adjustment,” but felt she needed to do it to help care for her granddaughters, Sasha and Malia Obama.

WASHINGTON, DC – JANUARY 21: The daughters of U.S. President Barack Obama, Sasha Obama (L) and Malia Obama (C) and mother-in-law Marian Robinson look on followoing the presidents public ceremonial inauguration on the West Front of the U.S. Capitol January 21, 2013 in Washington, DC. Barack Obama was re-elected for a second term as President of the United States. (Photo by Rob Carr/Getty Images)

“I felt like this was going to be a very hard life for both of them, and I … was worried about their safety. And I was worried about my grandkids,” Robinson told “CBS Mornings.”

However, Michelle Obama said her mother quickly became a “beloved figure” in the White House.

“She had a stream of people,” Obama said back in 2018. “The butlers, the housekeepers. They would all stop by … Grandma’s room was like the confessional. You know, everyone would go there and just unload, you know? And then they’d leave. People still visit with mom in Chicago.”

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