Marian Shields Robinson, the mother of Michelle Obama, who moved with the first family to the White House when son-in-law Barack Obama was elected president, has died at the age of 86.
Robinson’s death was announced in an online tribute by Michelle Obama, which highlighted the time Robinson spent living in the White House as an informal first grandmother to the Obama children. Former President Barack Obama also paid tribute to her, expressing gratitude for “the extraordinary gift of her life.”
Marian Shields Robinson was born in 1937 on Chicago’s South Side. She grew up in a small house with seven siblings. In 1960, she married Fraser Robinson III, a pump operator for Chicago’s water department. The couple had two children: Craig, born in 1962, and Michelle, born two years later. Robinson worked as a secretary and for a bank before becoming a stay-at-home mother.
Her role as a supportive and loving grandmother and mother was evident during her years in the White House, where she helped raise her grandchildren while providing invaluable support to her daughter and son-in-law during their presidency.
