Barack and Michelle Obama 'heartbroken' as they open up on 'devastating loss' - 'Not sure how we’ll move on'

Marian Robinson, who lived in the White House with the Obamas, died at the age of 96 in Chicago yesterday.

The family said: “As a sister, aunt, cousin, neighbor, and friend to so many, she was beloved beyond words by countless others whose lives were improved by her presence.

“She passed peacefully this morning, and right now, none of us are quite sure how exactly we’ll move on without her.”

Michelle separately posted a tribute to her late mother, describing her as her “rock”.

She added: “My mom Marian Robinson was my rock, always there for whatever I needed.

“She was the same steady backstop for our entire family, and we are heartbroken to share she passed away today.

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“We wanted to offer some reflections on her remarkable life.”

The former First Lady also posted a carousel of photographs of her late mother.

Reflecting on her childhood in an accompanying obituary, Michelle wrote: “Her father, because of the color of his skin, wasn’t allowed to join a union or work for larger construction firms, and he grew mistrustful of a world that seemed to have little place for him.

“Yet many mornings, he would wake the kids up at sunrise by blasting jazz records as an alarm clock.

“She learned early that even in the face of hardship, there was music to be found.”

Marion raised Michelle and Craig alongside her late husband Fraser Robinson.

Following Barack’s victory over John McCain, the mother-of-two moved into the White House in January 2009.

“We needed her. The girls needed her. And she ended up being our rock through it all," they said.

“She relished her role as a grandmother. ... And although she enforced whatever household rules we’d set for bedtime, watching TV, or eating candy, she made clear that she sided with her 'grandbabies' in thinking that their parents were too darn strict.”

Barack also posted on social media about the family’s loss.

The 44th President said: “There was and will be only one Marian Robinson.”

He added: “In our sadness, we are lifted up by the extraordinary gift of her life.

“And we will spend the rest of ours trying to live up to her example.”