Obama Family's Personal Chef Found Dead Near Martha's Vineyard
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One of former President Barack Obama's chefs has been found dead, according to multiple reports.
Massachusetts State Police said divers recovered the body from the Edgartown Great Pond, according to a July 24 news release. He was later identified as Tafari Campbell of Dumfries, VA.
The deceased 45-year-old man was paddleboarding near the Obama family's Martha's Vineyard home before going missing. Neither the former President nor former First Lady Michelle Obama were at the residence at the time of the incident, according to authorities.
A witness alleged they saw the chef—who was also a husband and father of twins—struggling to stay aboard the small watercraft before going under, according to police. It is assumed he ultimately drowned, although an investigation of the incident is currently underway by the State Police Detective Unit for the Cape and Islands District and Edgartown Police.
The culinary artist met the Obamas while he was a White House chef during the former president's tenure. Before his death, he had been employed with the family since 2017, when they extended an invitation to have Campbell continue to work for them upon their departure from the White House.
The Obamas mourned Campbell's loss in a joint statement, describing the chef as 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," their statement read, per CNN. "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."
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"That's why, when we were getting ready to leave the White House, we asked Tafari to stay with us, and he generously agreed," the statement continued, adding, "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."
According to the Vineyard Gazette, the search for Campbell began on the evening of July 23.
Massachusetts Environmental Police Officers used side-scan sonar from a boat and eventually found Campbell's body about 100 feet from shore under about eight feet of water.
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