Just one day after Boston Ballet principal soloist Michaela Mabinty DePrince died at the age of 29, her adoptive mother also passed away from an unrelated illness.
Elaine DePrince, the late ballerina’s mom, died on Thursday during a routine procedure in preparation for a surgery, according to family spokesperson Jess Volinski.
Michaela DePrince’s death on Wednesday was announced on her Instagram later that week.
“The last few days have been even more difficult than most people realize because the family has also been dealing with the death of Michaela’s adoptive mother Elaine DePrince,” Volinski revealed in a recent statement on Facebook.
In her post, Volinski first thanked people for their outpouring of support amid Michaela DePrince’s death before elaborating on Elaine DePrince’s passing.
“Her mother Elaine died during a routine procedure in preparation for a surgery on September 11th. Michaela died before Elaine and Elaine did not know of Michaela’s passing at the time of her procedure,” the statement continues.
The statement notes that Elaine and Michaela DePrince’s deaths “were completely unrelated.”
“As unbelievable as it may seem, the two deaths were completely unrelated. The only way we can make sense of the senseless is that Elaine, who had already lost three children many years ago, was by the grace of God spared the pain of experiencing the loss of a fourth child,” the statement reads.
The family asked for privacy as they grieve from their losses.
Michaela DePrince’s death was announced on Friday in an Instagram post. She was 29. A cause of death for the dancer has yet to be shared.
The dancer had been candid about her love of ballet, sharing posts from her many performances.
Michaela DePrince was born in Sierra Leone during the civil war. Then named Mabinty Bangura, her parents died when she was a child and sent to an orphanage. Elaine DePrince planned to adopt one of Michaela’s friends from Africa.
“I got a call from the adoption agency,” Elaine told NBC News in 2017. They said, “Which Mabinty are you adopting? We have two of them.”
Elaine DePrince was told that Michaela had been turned down by 12 families because of her vitiligo, and decided to adopt both girls.
“She was standing there with her arms folded really angry,” Elaine DePrince said. “I think … she just thought there was going to be more rejection ahead of her.”
At the time, Michaela DePrince told NBC News, “I see her walking towards us, and then she takes our hands and she says, ‘I’m your new mama.’”
The two Mabintys were renamed Michaela and Mia.
From there, Michaela DePrince, who had been fascinated with ballet since she was a little girl, set her sights on going pro. She would go on to became the youngest ballerina with the Dance Theatre of Harlem in New York City at the age of 17. She then joined Dutch National Ballet and was a principal soloist at the Boston Ballet.
