Jeff Bezos is mourning the loss of his mother, Jacklyn “Jackie” Bezos, who died at the age of 78 on August 14, 2025. The late Bezos Family Foundation founder was living with dementia during her final years, and Jeff paid tribute to her in an emotional public statement.
“We were all so lucky to be in her life,” Jeff wrote, in part, in his Instagram statement that day. “I hold her safe in my heart forever. I love you, mom.”
Keep reading to learn more about Jeff’s late mother, Jackie, including her life, career, motherhood and health.
As Jeff pointed out in his Instagram tribute, Jackie became a mom when she was 17 years old. According to the Bezos Scholars Program’s website, Jackie juggled night classes with motherhood after high school, then got a job working at a bank to provide for herself and Jeff. It was at her job where she met husband Miguel “Mike” Bezos, and they got married in April 1968.
“Her adulthood started a little bit early when she became my mom at the tender age of 17,” Jeff wrote in his social media post, adding, “That couldn’t have been easy, but she made it all work. She pounced on the job of loving me with ferocity, brought my amazing dad [Miguel] onto the team a few years later, and then added my sister and brother to her list of people to love, guard, and nourish.”
The Amazon founder added that Jackie “always gave so much more than she ever asked for.”
