Owner of Cafe Where Obama Had Breakfast Friday Dies Suddenly

Josephine “Ann” Harris suffered a heart attack shortly after the president's visit.
By Joyce Jones
Posted: 07/06/2012 05:00 PM EDT
Filed Under Politics News, Barack Obama, Barack Obama 2012, President Barack Obama, 2012 Election, President Obama

Josephine "Ann" Harris, 70, of Ann's Place cafe had met with President Obama before dying suddenly on Friday.

Hours after President Obama stopped by her cafe for a breakfast of eggs over easy, bacon and wheat toast Friday morning, Josephine “Ann” Harris, the 70-year-old proprietor of the Akron-based Ann's Place, suffered a fatal heart attack.


The Akron Beacon Journal reports that shortly after the president's visit, after Harris complained of fatigue and a tingling feeling, an ambulance took her to the Akron General Medical Center where she was pronounced dead at 11:18 a.m.


Ironically, the day started out as one of her best ever. The president was in Ohio as part of his "Betting on America" bus tour through Ohio and Pennsylvania, and Ann's Place was the first stop on Day 2. Harris, who received a hug from Obama, later told a Beacon journal reporter that she was "ecstatic" about the visit.


“I’m sure this was her highlight,” said Frankie Adkins after learning of her sister's sudden death. “She loved Obama.”


White House spokesman Jay Carney told reporters who covered the two-day tour that the president phoned Harris' daughter, Wilma Parsons, to express his condolences.


"The president expressed his sorrow and his condolences," Carney said. "Very sad event. He was honored to meet her this morning and passed on his feelings that the whole family is in his thoughts and prayers today."


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