On Thursday, the widow of Senator Robert F. Kennedy and sister-in-law of President John F. Kennedy, Ethel Kennedy, died of a stroke at the age of 96.

According to Fox News, Kennedy had her stroke on October 3 and died after one week in the hospital. Her death was announced by Joe Kennedy III, one of Ethel’s grandsons and a former congressman who currently serves as the U.S. Special Envoy for Northern Ireland.

“It is with our hearts full of love that we announce the passing of our amazing grandmother, Ethel Kennedy,” said Joe Kennedy in a written statement. “She died this morning from complications related to a stroke suffered last week. Along with a lifetime’s work in social justice and human rights, our mother leaves behind nine children, 34 grandchildren, and 24 great-grandchildren, along with numerous nieces and nephews, all of whom love her dearly.”

Ethel was the last surviving member of the most famous generation of the Kennedy family, which, aside from her husband and the former president, also included Senator Ted Kennedy (D-Mass.) and President Kennedy’s widow, Jacqueline Kennedy.

Her husband Robert served as Attorney General of the United States during his brother’s presidency, continuing to serve for roughly another year after President Kennedy’s assassination in November of 1963. Robert, colloquially referred to as “Bobby,” was then elected to the U.S. Senate from New York in 1964. He ran for the Democratic nomination for president in 1968 and was considered an early frontrunner, but was assassinated shortly after winning the California primary.

Following her husband’s assassination, Ethal founded the Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights organization in his name.

One of Ethel’s sons is Robert F. Kennedy Jr., who has made political waves over the last two years following his decision to enter the 2024 presidential election. He first announced his candidacy as a Democrat, intending to challenge incumbent Joe Biden in the primaries, before withdrawing and running as an independent candidate. After a period where his polling reached the highest levels for a third-party candidate since Ross Perot in 1992, his polling eventually declined and he withdrew from the race. In a stunning announcement, Kennedy endorsed Republican nominee and former President Donald Trump, appearing onstage with him at a rally and continuing to serve as a campaign surrogate since then.

Kennedy issued his own statement on his mother’s passing, saying, “My mother invented tough love, and she could be hard on her children when we didn’t live up to her expectations.”

“But she was also intensely loyal, and we always knew that she would stand fiercely behind us when we came under attack by others,” the former candidate added. “She was our role model for self-discipline, for resilience, and for self-confidence.”