Gisele Bündchen has paid tribute to her mother Vania Nonnenmacher, who passed away aged 75 on Sunday, January 28, reportedly after a battle with cancer.
News of her passing was first made public in a statement from the Hospital Moinhos de Vento in Porto Alegre, Brazil – where she had been admitted into two days prior – though the Brazilian supermodel had yet to break her silence on the heartbreaking loss.
She did so on Tuesday, sharing an emotional tribute in her honor along with a slew of family photos featuring her mom as well as her dad Valdir Bündchen, and her five sisters, twin Patricia, plus Rafaela, Graziela, Gabriela and Raquel.
Gisele first posted a seemingly recent photo in which she is seen hugging her mom, followed by a throwback of her as a newborn, lying on her chest next to her twin sister.
She also included photos of her two kids with ex-husband Tom Brady, Benjamin Rein, 14, and Vivian Lake, 11, planting kisses on their grandmother's cheeks, plus old and new snapshots of the Bündchen bunch.
In her caption, written first in her native Portuguese and then in English, Gisele wrote: "Beloved mom. It hurts to know that I won't be able to hug you anymore, but I know that you will always be watching over us."
She continued: "You were an angel on earth, always helping everyone around you," adding: "I am so grateful to be your daughter and to have learned from you."
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"Thank you for being the best role model of love, strength, compassion, courage, and grace."
"I will forever cherish the beautiful memories we shared and will live by the values you taught me. You will live forever through the many lives that you touched," she further wrote, before concluding with: "Thank you for giving me five best friends for life. Your love will always guide us. I will see you in my dreams. Love you."
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The comments section under the post was quickly flooded with condolences from celebrities and fans alike, including messages from Penélope Cruz, Katie Couric, Kelly Rowland, Kelly Slater, and Reynaldo Gianecchini, among others.
Gisele actually has her mom to thank for kick starting her modeling career, which led to her being the highest-paid supermodel in the world from 2002 and 2017.
Though she had initially grown up with aspirations of becoming a volleyball player, in 1993, her mom enrolled her and her twin sister Patricia in a modeling course. That eventually won them a trip to various Brazilian cities, during which Gisele was discovered by Elite Model Management at a shopping mall.
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