On Sunday, former president Barak Obama’s personal chef drowned in a paddle board accident close to his Martha’s Vineyard residence. After a fellow paddleboarder reported that Tafari Campbell, 45, had entered the water and failed to surface, Massachusetts State Police discovered his body in Edgartown Great Pond, close to the Obama residence on the southern edge of the vacation island. Even though search and rescue personnel were unsuccessful in finding him all evening, sonar was eventually used to locate his body.
Obama’s weren’t at the house when the tragedy happened
Obama and his wife, Michelle Obama, a former first lady, weren’t at the house when the tragedy happened. Campbell was hired when the Obamas left to join their home staff and served as a sous chef at the White House during the Obama administration. (https://www.genusinnovation.com/) “He’s been part of our lives ever since, and our hearts are broken that he’s gone,” the Obamas said in a statement. “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 Obamas bought the almost 7,000-square-foot estate on Martha’s Vineyard from Boston Celtics owner Wycliffe Grousbeck in 2021. The house is located next to a coastal pond that is separated from the Atlantic Ocean by a thin-barrier beach.