A missing paddleboarder whose body was recovered in a lake on Martha’s Vineyard on Monday has been identified as an employee of former President Barak Obama, state police said.
Massachusetts State Police said the body of Tafari Campbell, 45, of Dumfries, Virginia, was recovered from Edgartown Great Pond, along the island’s south shore, shortly before 10 a.m.
State police say Campbell was employed by the former president and was visiting Martha’s Vineyard at the time of his death. The Obamas were not home, police said, but the couple released a statement Monday afternoon describing Campbell as a family member.
“Tafari was a beloved part of our family. When we met him, he was a talented sous chef at the White House: creative and passionate about food and its ability to bring people together. In the years that followed, we got to know him as a warm, funny, and extraordinarily kind person who made our lives just a little bit brighter.
So as we prepared to leave the White House, we asked Tafari to stay with us, and he generously agreed. He has been a part of our lives ever since, and our hearts are broken that he is 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.”
Divers with the state police Underwater Recovery Water Unit recovered the body after Massachusetts Environmental Police located it using side-scan sonar from a boat. The recovery was made about 100 feet offshore at a depth of about eight feet.
Several public safety agencies on the island responded to the Turkeyland Cove area for the search Sunday night, following a report that a paddleboarder had gone underwater and was not seen returning to the surface. Another paddleboarder was with the man when it happened, police said.
