George Clooney’s sister, Adelia “Ada” Zeidler has died. She was 65.
Zeidler died from cancer on Friday, Dec. 19, People magazine confirmed.
“My sister, Ada, was my hero,” Clooney told the outlet. “She faced down cancer with courage and humor. I’ve never met anyone so brave. Amal and I will miss her terribly.”
Zeidler died peacefully surrounded by the people she loved at St. Elizabeth Healthcare in Augusta, Ky., according to her obituary.
“A talented artist, she shared her skills as an elementary art teacher at Augusta Independent School for several years.” the obituary read. “In high school, her academic achievements qualified her to be a National Merit Scholar. Her love for reading connected her with other readers in a local book club. She was also a member of the Augusta Art Guild and was a past grand marshal of Augusta’s Annual White Christmas Parade.”
“In addition to her parents, she leaves behind her beloved children, Nick Zeidler and Allison Zeidler Herolaga and her husband, Kenny; her brother, George Clooney and his wife, Amal; and several uncles, aunts, and cousins.”
Though Zeidler had remained out of the public eye throughout Clooney’s rise to stardom, the brother and sister duo remained tight-knit.
“My sister, I’m very close to,” the actor told CBS This Morning in 2015.
The siblings, who grew up together in the small town of Augusta, Kentucky, reunited at Clooney’s high-profile, Italian wedding to wife, Amal, in 2014.
