BARACK Obama's grandmother, Madelyn Dunham, has died of cancer at the age of 86.
Senator Obama announced the news today, on the eve of the US election.
"It is with great sadness that we announce that our grandmother, Madelyn Dunham, has died peacefully after a battle with cancer,'' Senator Obama said in a joint statement with his sister Maya Soetoro-Ng.
"She was the cornerstone of our family, and a woman of extraordinary accomplishment, strength, and humility.
"She was the person who encouraged and allowed us to take chances.
"She was proud of her grandchildren and great-grandchildren and left this world with the knowledge that her impact on all of us was meaningful and enduring. Our debt to her is beyond measure.''
Senator Obama took a day off from the campaign late last month to visit Ms Dunham in his native Hawaii after saying she may not live until the election.
Ms Dunham, whom he affectionately knew as "Toot", helped raise Senator Obama, who barely knew his Kenyan-born father, and she was the last surviving close older relative, after his mother died of cancer over a decade ago. |