Barack Obama and former first lady Michelle Obama are mourning the loss of a staff member they considered “a truly wonderful man.” Tafari Campbell, who worked as a White House sous chef and later became the Obamas‘ chef, died on Monday, July 24, in a paddle boarding accident near the Obamas’ Katama estate in Martha’s Vineyard. He was 45.The search started at 7:46 p.m. ET on Sunday when Martha’s Vineyard police and fire agencies responded to a 911 call for “a male paddle boarder who had gone into the water, appeared to briefly struggle to stay on the surface, and then submerged and did not resurface.”A post shared by Tafari Campbell (@thymeless_creations)Massachusetts State Police confirmed Campbell’s death to PEOPLE during a news release.