Martina McBride's Mother Dies Following Emergency Heart Surgery: 'She Taught Us How to Be Strong'

Maria Pasquini
Updated

Martina McBride shared a touching tribute to her mother, Jeanne Schiff, who died on Friday following emergency heart surgery.

“My mom passed this morning,” the country singer, 53, announced in a moving tribute, which included several throwback photos of the pair. “She was a complex and amazing woman. Strong. Chic. Non-nonsense.”

“She took good care of us,” McBride continued. “She made her 4 kids self sufficient, told us to go outside and play, gave us chores to do and taught us how to work. She wasn’t one to smother you with affection, do your homework for you, or attend every ballgame, but we always knew she was there for us.

Reflecting on her mother’s recent health struggles, McBride shared that she had spent the last week with her mother in the hospital as doctors “went above and beyond to try and get her to a place where her heart would sustain her.”

“During that week I held her hand, rubbed her shoulders, stroked her face, told her I loved her and she told me she loved me. Even though I wish it had ended differently I wouldn’t have traded that time with her for anything,” she added. “So now we try and move forward without our matriarch. And somehow, in time, we will. Because she taught us how to be strong. I love you Mom. 1/10/20.”

In a show of support, many of McBride’s peers and fans sent the singer their love and prayers.

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My mom passed away this morning. She was a complex and amazing woman. Strong. Chic. No-nonsense. Hilarious. Witty. She had the prettiest hair and skin and hands...I loved her hands. She took good care of us. Our house was always the house where all the aunts, uncles, and cousins gathered, and she was really the reason for that. She made her 4 kids self sufficient, told us to go outside and play, gave us chores to do and taught us how to work. She wasn’t one to smother you with affection, do your homework for you, or attend every ballgame, but we always knew she was there for us. As we all got older we had many conversations about life, faith, morals, health, and the importance of getting your beauty sleep. She’d start every phone call or message with “Martina. This is your mother”. She loved to laugh and to tell stories to get a laugh. And even though she told me in the hospital that she wasn’t “an enthusiastic cook” she made the best fried chicken I’ve ever tasted. I spent the last week with her in ICU, with my dad, my brothers, and my sister, and a fantastic and caring team of doctors who went above and beyond to try and get her to a place where her heart would sustain her. During that week I held her hand, rubbed her shoulders, stroked her face, told her I loved her and she told me she loved me. Even though I wish it had ended differently I wouldn’t have traded that time with her for anything. So now we try and move forward without our matriarch. And somehow, in time, we will. Because she taught us how to be strong. I love you Mom. 1/10/20

A post shared by Martina McBride (@martinamcbride) on Jan 10, 2020 at 9:36pm PST

“I’m so sorry my friend. YOU are also an incredible mom. I’m sorry you lost your great teacher and you’ll be in my prayers,” wrote Brandi Carlile, while Sara Evans replied, “love you so much.”

“Love and strength. ❤️❤️❤️,” added Trisha Yearwood.

Early Friday morning, McBride asked her followers to pray for her mother, revealing she had undergone emergency heart surgery.

“I’ve been absent on social media because I’ve spent the past week with my family surrounding my mom with love 24/7 in a Kansas hospital following her emergency heart surgery,” she wrote. “She’s a fighter and one of the strongest women I know but she could use your prayers please. Thank you.”

From an early age, McBride’s parents were supporters of her musical ambitions.

“My parents, Daryl and Jeanne Schiff, realized I had talent and drive as soon as I started singing at age 4,” she recalled to The Washington Post in 2014, adding that she started singing in her father’s country band, the Schiffters, when she was 7.

And while her mom didn’t perform with the group, McBride said she “ran the soundboard when we performed.”