Does the Military Vote Really Lean Republican? Planned Parenthood of Hawaii, on February 16, 2013, held "our most successful gala ever" at the magnificent Monarch Room of the Royal Hawaiian Hotel, attended by over 400 political and community leaders. Madelyn Payne Dunham, Senator Barack Obama's maternal grandmother, died in Honolulu early this morning. ... Tonight is for her," Obama said. [13], Madelyn and Stanley Dunham raised their grandson Barack Obama from age 10 while his mother and step-father were living in Jakarta, Indonesia, so he could go to school in Hawaii. And Stanley Ann Dunham arrived in late November 1942. [37], Madelyn Payne Dunham's heritage consists mostly of English ancestors, and smaller amounts of Scottish, Welsh, Irish, and German ancestors, who settled in the American colonies during the 17th and 18th centuries. The family of Barack Obama, the 44th president of the United States, and his wife Michelle Obama is made up of people of Kenyan (Luo), African-American, and Old Stock American (including originally English, Scots-Irish, Welsh, German, and Swiss) ancestry. It brought our grandmother and us great comfort. "Thank you to my grandmother who helped raise me, and is sitting in Hawaii somewhere right now because she can't travel, but who poured everything she had into me, and who helped to make me the man I am today. Madelyn became a Rosie-the-Riveter at Boeing Co.'s B-29 production plant in Wichita. After the war, she worked her way up to vice president at a local bank in Hawaii. Robert Perry's wife, Sarah Hoskins, was also born in Wales and immigrated to Delaware County, Ohio as a young child. Dunham helped raise the Democratic presidential nominee and frequently was cited in his speeches as an inspiration. In lieu of flowers, we ask that you make a donation to any worthy organization in search of a cure for cancer. The son of a Kenyan man and a white woman from Kansas, Obama was born in Hawaii. Our thoughts and prayers go out to them as they remember and celebrate the life of someone who had such a profound impact in their lives.”. As transcribed from ABC audio, this is what Obama told the voter to whom he talked by phone from his Charlotte, N.C., campaign office: 5:15 08 Mencken. It is with great sadness that we announce that our grandmother, Madelyn Dunham, has died peacefully after a battle with cancer. But she is a typical white person, who, if she sees somebody on the street that she doesn't know...there's a reaction that's been bred into our experiences that don't go away and that sometimes come out in the wrong way, and that's just the nature of race in our society.[21][22]. During his teenage years, it was his grandmother who "injected" into him "a lot of that very midwestern, sort of traditional sense of prudence and hard work", even though "some of those values didn't sort of manifest themselves until I got older". Obama wrote in his memoir Dreams From My Father: "I'd arrived at an unspoken pact with my grandparents: I could live with them and they'd leave me alone so long as I kept my trouble out of sight".[13]. They aren't seeking the limelight. Foubert taught English. she was the wife of Stanley Armour Dunham and the mother of Stanley Ann Dunham.. So when I got nominated, she called and said, "That's nice, Barry, that's nice". [28], In April 2008, Madelyn Dunham appeared briefly in her first campaign ad for her grandson, saying that Obama had "a lot of depth, and a broadness of view".[29]. [27] Her brother, Charlie Payne, told the Associated Press that his sister's reaction to being made a campaign issue was "no more than just sort of raised eyebrows". By Jeff Zeleny. He has carried on through his campaign events today without mentioning it. [45][46] The DNA evidence suggests that Punch was of Sub-Saharan origin, possibly from Cameroon. But a woman who once confessed her fear of black men who pass her on the street, and who, on more than one occasion, has uttered racial or ethnic stereotypes that made me cringe. [2][33] Obama and his sister Maya Soetoro released a statement saying, "She was the cornerstone of our family, and a woman of extraordinary accomplishment, strength, and humility". [32], On November 2, 2008 (November 3, 2008 in the continental United States), the Obama campaign announced that Madelyn Dunham had "died peacefully after a battle with cancer" in Hawaii. On March 18, 2008, in a speech on race relations in Philadelphia in the wake of controversial videos of Obama's pastor Jeremiah Wright surfacing, Obama described his grandmother: I can no more disown him than I can my white grandmother – a woman who helped raise me, a woman who sacrificed again and again for me, a woman who loves me as much as she loves anything in this world, but a woman who once confessed her fear of black men who passed by her on the street, and who on more than one occasion has uttered racial or ethnic stereotypes that made me cringe.[20]. She was an avid bridge player, but mostly stayed at home in her apartment "listening to books on tape and watching her grandson on CNN every day". Early life. Madelyn Lee Payne Dunham was the maternal grandmother of Barack Obama. "He said, 'You know, I got my toughness from Toot,' 'cause she taught him with her quiet confidence and love and support that he could do anything," Michelle Obama said. Madelyn Payne was born in the oil boomtown of Augusta, to stern Methodist parents who did not believe in drinking, playing cards or dancing. With just two weeks to go before the presidential election, Obama left the campaign trail to visit Dunham in Honolulu. OBAMA: “Can I say this? Obama announced the news from the campaign trail in Charlotte, N.C. She was the cornerstone of our family, and a woman of extraordinary accomplishment, strength, and humility. She has terrible osteoporosis so she can't fly, but, you know, she has been the rock of our family and she is sharp as a tack. "I can no more disown him," Obama said, "than I can disown my white grandmother, a woman who helped raise me. Jeremiah Wright. On March 20, 2008, in a radio interview on Philadelphia's WIP, Obama explained this remark by saying: The point I was making was not that my grandmother harbors any racial animosity – she doesn't. Their immediate family was the first family of the United States from 2009 to 2017. However, I did witness a poignant moment just a few minutes ago, when Obama stopped by unannounced at his Charlotte, N.C., campaign office and made some calls to undecided voters. [6] While in Wichita, she met Stanley Dunham from El Dorado, Kansas,[6] and the two married on May 5, 1940, the night of Madelyn's senior prom. [17], Dunham took care of her daughter in Hawaii in the months before Ann Dunham died in 1995 at age 52. During dinner, Dr. Maya Soetoro-Ng accepted the Bette Takahashi Service Award given to Madelyn Dunham, President Barack Obama’s grandmother, posthumously. [1] She was an honor roll student and one of the best students at Augusta High School, where she graduated in 1940. [15] Her colleagues recall her as a "tough boss" who would make you "sink or swim", but who had a "soft spot for those willing to work hard". Madelyn Lee Payne Dunham was the maternal grandmother of Barack Obama. She was 86 and had been suffering from cancer. Their names are not in the newspapers, but each and every day they work hard. The Dunhams moved to a bigger opportunity in 1955 -- a large store in downtown Seattle called Standard-Grunbaum Furniture at the corner of 2nd Avenue and Pine Street. "One of the things I wanted to make sure of is that I had a chance to sit down with her and talk to her," he said. Parenthood of Hawaii starting in 1976. The Dunhams were full-time working parents, renters and strugglers in pursuit of the next opportunity. Gregarious, friendly, challenging and loud, "he was such a loose wheel at times," said Clarence Kerns, from the El Dorado class of 1935. His communications director told reporters that she had fallen ill in the preceding weeks, and that while she was released from the hospital the week before, her health had deteriorated "to the point where her situation is very serious". The Dunhams were Baptists. She is somebody that I love as much as anybody. she was the wife of Stanley Armour Dunham and the mother of Stanley Ann Dunham.. "She's still alert and she's still got all her faculties, and I want to make sure that I don't miss that opportunity right now.". [1] In 1970s Honolulu, both women and the minority white population were routinely the target of discrimination. (iaud) who don’t want to feel constraints. He turned his back on the press pool that was recording all of this, and told the voter: “Obviously, this is happening in my own family. "Just deep love and admiration. She was the person who encouraged and allowed us to take chances. These people are part of me.". The joint statement with his sister Maya Soetoro-Ng said Dunham died peacefully late Sunday night after a battle with cancer. In Seattle, she eventually became vice-president of a local bank and Stanley Dunham worked in a bigger furniture store (Standard-Grunbaum Furniture). But those are fears that are embedded in our culture, and embedded in our society, and even within our own families, even within a family like mine that is diverse. Early life. Stanley and Madelyn Dunham were unhappy about their daughter's marriage to Obama Sr. in 1961, particularly after receiving a long, angry letter from his father, who "didn't want the Obama blood sullied by a white woman". On Friday, Barack Obama spent the day saying goodbye to his grandmother, Madelyn Dunham, who is gravely ill. Barack Obama spent the day saying goodbye to his grandmother, Madelyn Dunham, who is gravely ill. Not only does it end up saving money for the state but (inaud) it’s a lot better for people like yourself and my grandmother. She's not extraordinary in that regard. She was one of the best students in the graduating class of 1940[1]. Madelyn and Stanley Dunham attended church at the East Shore Unitarian Church in Bellevue. Obama said his iconic image of his grandmother was seeing her come home from work and trading her business outfit and girdle for a muumuu, some slippers and a drink and a cigarette. Obama found out around 8 a.m. Press Release: Ancestry.com Discovers President Obama Related to First Documented Slave in America: Research Connects First African-American President to First African Slave in the American Colonies. Obviously this is happening in my own family, and in addition to social security and Medicare one of the things that I think is really important is exercising home care a lot more (Obama turns his back away from cameras and audio becomes muzzled) My grandmother was able to stay in a home all the way until recently. They said: "She was the cornerstone of our family, and a woman of extraordinary accomplishment, strength, and humility. Her brother Charlie Payne was part of the 89th Infantry Division, which liberated the Nazi concentration camp at Ohrdruf, a subcamp of Buchenwald,[7] a fact Barack Obama has referred to in speeches. She had recently broken her hip, and Obama told ABC that visiting her was important to him. Others who knew Dunham described him as a salesman "who could charm the legs off a couch.". Obama has said the biggest regret of his life was not making it to his mother's bedside before she died in 1995. Obviously this is happening in my own family, and in addition to social security and Medicare one of the things that I think is really important is exercising home care a lot more (Obama turns his back away from cameras and audio becomes muzzled) My grandmother was able to stay in a home all the way until recently. Madelyn Payne Dunham's heritage consists mostly of English ancestors, and smaller amounts of Scottish, Welsh, Irish and German ancestors, who settled in the American colonies during the 17th and 18th centuries. Madelyn Payne Dunham was 86. This page was last modified on 23 December 2015, at 10:59. "First in Furniture, Second at Pine," read the Yellow Pages ad in the Seattle telephone directory. guests watched a tribute video from President Obama, Love and Values of a Quiet Hero , produced by Rai Saint Chu, Gala Advisory Committee Chair. © 2020 TIME USA, LLC. [13], Until her death, Madelyn Dunham lived in the same small high-rise apartment where she raised her grandson Barack Obama. A woman who loves me as much as she loves anything in this world. Barack Hussein Obama was elected the 44th president of the United States on Tuesday, as the country chose him as its first black chief executive. Madelyn Lee Payne Dunham (/ˈdʌnəm/ DUN-əm; October 26, 1922[1] – November 2, 2008) was the American maternal grandmother of Barack Obama, the 44th President of the United States. 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. She did not know just how much it would change her life, and his. A campaign waged under the specter of war and financial crisis drew to an anxious finish as Senators Barack Obama and John McCain raced across nine states. White Americans are not remotely the bigots the G.O.P. She's tough as nails". That part of me that's hardheaded, I get from her. [16], Obama said about her during an interview with Diane Sawyer, "She never got a college education but is one of the smartest people I know... She's where I get my practical streak. Madelyn Dunham, who watched from afar as her grandson reached the brink of the presidency, did not live to see whether he won. Madelyn Payne Dunham, Senator Barack Obama's maternal grandmother, died in Honolulu early this morning. [6], During World War II, Madelyn Dunham worked the night shift on a Boeing B-29 assembly line in Wichita and Stanley Dunham enlisted in the Army. The Party of No: New Details on the GOP Plot to Obstruct Obama, Ted Cruz Reads ‘Green Eggs and Ham’ on Senate Floor — And That’s Not the Weird Part.