Barack and Michelle Obama mourn the death of personal chef Tafari Campbell

Barack Obama and his wife, Michelle ObamaAre Mourn the passing of your personal chef Tafari Campbell after she was found dead on Monday, July 24.

“Tafari was a beloved part of our family,” the 61-year-old former president and 59-year-old former first lady shared. CNN In a joint statement on Monday. “When we first met him, he was a gifted chef at the White House – creative and passionate about food and the ability to bring people together. In the years that followed, we came to know him as a warm, funny, insanely nice person who just made our whole lives a little brighter.

News came Monday that Campbell’s body had been discovered by divers near Obama’s Katama estate in Martha’s Vineyard, Massachusetts, after being reported missing on Sunday, July 23. He was 45 years old.

The search for Campbell began Sunday night after police and firefighters responded to a 911 call at 7:46 p.m. ET that reported “a male paddleboarder who entered the water appeared to briefly struggle to stay on the surface and then plunged into the water and failed to re-surface.”

According to a press release, Massachusetts Environmental Police officers recovered Campbell’s body shortly before 10 a.m. ET on Monday. Using side-scan sonar from a boat, the department found the dead chef “about 100 feet from shore at a depth of approximately eight feet.”

The police report stated that Obama “was not present at the residence at the time of the accident”. however, Family It didn’t take long to praise Campbell through his statement on Monday.

Campbell first met the couple when she worked as an assistant chef at the White House during Barack’s presidency. Obama later hired him as his personal chef after Barack left office. (Barack served as the 44th President of the United States from 2009 to 2017.)

“He’s been a part of our lives ever since, and our hearts are broken that he’s gone.” Barack and Michelle told CNN on Monday. “Today we join all those who knew and loved Tafari, especially his wife sherries And his twin brothers, Xavier and Sevin – are mourning the loss of a truly wonderful person.”

The Cape and Islands State Police Investigation Unit and the Edgartown Police Department are currently investigating Campbell’s death.