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Vernon Winfrey, Oprah Winfrey’s father, has died, the TV mogul announced Saturday on Instagram.
Vernon had been battling cancer, according to Oprah Daily, and died at the age of 89. He passed away Friday, July 8, with family by his side, including Oprah.
“Yesterday with family surrounding his bedside I had the sacred honor of witnessing the man responsible for my life, take his last breath,” Oprah wrote. “We could feel Peace enter the room at his passing.”
Oprah shared the news alongside a video of gospel singer Wintley Phipps “saluting” Vernon with a song, which took place at a recent Fourth of July celebration held by her family.
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On the Fourth of July, Oprah surprised her beloved father with what she called the “Vernon Winfrey Appreciation Celebration” and surprised him with flowers, balloons, a giant sign, and, according to according to Oprah Daily, some of his favorite people including his older sister, Christine, who he greeted with a tearful embrace.
On Father’s Day, Oprah reflected on social media about some of the life lesson’s Vernon taught her.
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“If it were not for him, I doubt that anybody in the world would know my name,” Oprah Daily reported she said in her video for Father’s Day. “I know firsthand how the trajectory of life can change by the positive influence of a good father.”
Vernon was well known in Nashville for owning Winfrey Barber & Beauty Shop for 50 years and for his work as a councilman for 16 years.
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Nashville Mayor John Cooper offered his “deepest condolences to the family of Vernon Winfrey” and remembered him for having “dedicated his life to entrepreneurship, barbering, and mentoring young men in the community.”
