WASHINGTON, June 1, 2024 (BSS/AFP) - Marian Robinson, the mother of former
first lady Michelle Obama, who moved into the White House with the first
family, helping care for her young granddaughters and providing a stabilizing
presence in one of the world's most stressful residences, died Friday, her
family said.

"We needed her. The girls needed her. And she ended up being our rock through
it all," her family said in a statement. Robinson was 86.

Though she eschewed the spotlight, Robinson was present for some of the Obama
family's most visible moments, often appearing at holiday celebrations or
other events alongside the first couple and their two daughters, Sasha and
Malia.

On election night in 2008, she was famously photographed holding her son-in-
law Barack Obama's hand while the two sat on a couch as results poured in,
sweeping him into office as the nation's first Black president.

"At every step, as our families went down paths none of us could have
predicted, she remained our refuge from the storm, keeping our feet on solid
ground," the statement read.

Robinson was born in 1937 and grew up on the South Side of Chicago, one of
seven children, before studying to become a teacher and working as a
secretary.

She married her husband, Fraser Robinson, in 1960, and the couple had two
children, Michelle Obama and her brother Craig Robinson, both of whom were
also raised on the South Side.

Fraser Robinson died in 1991 after a long battle with multiple sclerosis.

"The trappings and glamour of the White House were never a great fit for
Marian Robinson," the statement from her family said.

Rather than socializing with White House VIP guests, she preferred to spend
her time upstairs with a TV tray, in a room near her bedroom with enormous
windows overlooking the Washington Monument, the statement said.

She enjoyed sneaking out of the White House to run errands, such as popping
to the drug store.

In the Obamas' eight years at the White House from 2009 to 2017, "the only
guest she made a point of asking to meet was the Pope," her family said.

Robinson is survived by both her children, their spouses and six
grandchildren.

"She passed peacefully this morning, and right now, none of us are quite sure
how exactly we'll move on without her," the statement said.