Obama's grandmother dies of cancer

McCain offers condolences to presidential opponent

Last Updated: Monday, November 3, 2008 | 6:16 PM ET

CBC News

Barack Obama's grandmother has died of cancer, the U.S. Democratic presidential candidate said in a statement issued Monday, one day before Americans were to decide whether the grandson she helped raise would be elected to the White House.

A 1979 photo shows Barack Obama at his high school graduation in Hawaii with his maternal grandparents, Madelyn Dunham and her husband, Stanley Dunham, both natives of Kansas. (Obama presidential campaign/Associated Press)Madelyn Dunham, 86, described by Obama as the "rock" of his family, died peacefully at her home in Hawaii late Sunday, Obama said in a joint statement with his sister, Maya Soetoro-Ng.

The presidential hopeful said he learned of her death Monday morning while he was campaigning in Jacksonville, Fla., ahead of Tuesday's national vote.

"She was the cornerstone of our family, and a woman of extraordinary accomplishment, strength and humility," the statement said, adding Obama planned to go ahead with scheduled campaign appearances.

At one appearance Monday evening, Obama told supporters at the University of North Carolina-Charlotte that "she's gone home."

"And she died peacefully in her sleep with my sister at her side. And so there is great joy as well as tears. I'm not going to talk about it too long because it is hard for me to talk about."

In a statement, Obama's Republican opponent, John McCain, offered condolences to Obama and his family for their loss.

"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," the statement by McCain and his wife Cindy said.

Dunham had been gravely ill since recently breaking her hip. She was also reported to have a heart condition, but Obama had earlier refused to disclose more details of her condition.

The Illinois senator recently took a break from the campaign to visit Dunham in Hawaii, saying he didn't want to risk his grandmother dying before he had a chance to say goodbye, which happened when his mother died of ovarian cancer in 1995.

During the campaign, Obama has described his Caucasian grandmother as the daughter of a midwest oil company clerk who taught him "values straight from the Kansas heartland" — such as self-reliance, love of one's country and hard work.

“She put off a lot of things in her own life to make sure that myself and my sister, that we were taken care of,” Obama said in a recent interview.

“A big chunk of whatever success I’ve achieved is because of her.”