Carolyn Cheeks Kilpatrick, mother of former Detroit Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick, passes away

DETROIT – Carolyn Cheeks Kilpatrick, the former U.S. Representative for Michigan’s 13th Congressional District and mother of former Detroit Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick, has died.

Local 4 got the news of Carolyn’s passing on Tuesday (Oct. 7).

Born in Detroit, Carolyn taught in the city’s schools before serving 18 years in the Michigan State House and then Congress from 1997 to 2011.

Carolyn broke barriers as the first African American woman on the House Appropriations Committee and championed international aid, securing millions for flood relief in sub-Saharan Africa.

She is survived by her two children, Ayanna and Kwame.

Carolyn died at the age of 80.