NEWSBarack Obama's Personal Chef Dies in Paddleboarding Accident Near Former President's Martha's Vineyard Home
July 24 2023, Published 7:00 p.m. ET
After a body was found near President Barack Obama's Martha's Vineyard estate on Monday, July 24, it's been revealed it was the former president's personal chef Tafari Campbell, Massachusetts police announced.
“Tafari was a beloved part of our family. When we first met him, he was a talented sous chef at the White House — creative and passionate about food, and its ability to bring people together. In the years that followed, we got to know him as a warm, fun, extraordinarily kind person who made all of our lives a little brighter," a statement read. “That’s why, when we were getting ready to leave the White House, we asked Tafari to stay with us, and he generously agreed. He’s been part of our lives ever since, and our hearts are broken that he’s gone."
"Today we join everyone who knew and loved Tafari — especially his wife Sherise and their twin boys, Xavier and Savin — in grieving the loss of a truly wonderful man," the message concluded of Campbell, who went to work for the couple when they left the White House.
The 45-year-old died in a paddleboarding accident, and "President and Mrs. Obama were not present at the residence at the time of the accident," the Massachusetts State Police said.
On Sunday, July 23, authorities searched the water after they received reports of a missing paddle boarder. Police were looking for “a male paddle boarder who had gone into the water, appeared to briefly struggle to stay on the surface, and then submerged and did not resurface. ... Another paddle boarder was on the pond with him at the time and observed him go under the water.”
Campbell's body was found the next day at 10 a.m. by divers.
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The divers “deployed side-scan sonar from a boat," according to authorities, adding that Campbell was found 100 feet from shore.
“The investigation into the fatality is being conducted by the State Police Detective Unit for the Cape and Islands District and Edgartown Police," the statement read.
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Chicago Sun-Times reported on the body being found.
