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Obama mourns death of poet, author Maya Angelou


Published: 12:55 EST, 28 May 2014 | Updated: 12:55 EST, 28 May 2014

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Barack Obama says the passing of poet and author Maya Angelou (MEYE'-uh AN'-juh-loh) has dimmed "one of the brightest lights of our time."

Obama says he and first lady Michelle Obama will cherish the time they spent with Angelou.

He says Angelou had the ability to remind us that we are all God's children and we all have something to offer. FILE - In this Feb. 15, 2011 file photo, President Barack Obama kisses author and poet Maya Angelou after awarding her the 2010 Medal of Freedom during a ceremony in the East Room of the White House in Washington. Angelou, author of "I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings," has died, Wake Forest University said Wednesday, May 28, 2014. She was 86. (AP Photo/Pablo Martinez Monsivais, File)

Obama says Angelou was many things but that above all she was a storyteller whose greatest stories were true.

Obama presented Angelou with the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the nation's highest civilian honor, in 2011.

He says Angelou inspired his mother to name his sister Maya.

Angelou died Wednesday at age 86.



