George Clooney’s Sister, Adelia ‘Ada’ Zeidler, Dies at 65: ‘I’ve Never Met Anyone So Brave’ (Exclusive)

NEED TO KNOW

• George Clooney’s older sister, Adelia “Ada” Zeidler, died at the age of 65 from cancer on Friday, Dec. 19, PEOPLE can confirm

• “She faced down cancer with courage and humor. I’ve never met anyone so brave,” George tells PEOPLE in an exclusive statement

• According to her obituary, Ada died “peacefully surrounded by the people she loved”

George Clooney’s sister, Adelia “Ada” Zeidler, has died. She was 65.

PEOPLE can confirm that the actor’s older sibling died from cancer on Friday, Dec. 19.

“My sister, Ada, was my hero,” Clooney tells PEOPLE in an exclusive statement. “She faced down cancer with courage and humor. I’ve never met anyone so brave. Amal and I will miss her terribly.”

According to her obituary, Ada — of Augusta, Ky. — died “peacefully surrounded by the people she loved” at St. Elizabeth Healthcare in Edgewood, Ky.

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George Clooney’s sister, Adelia ‘Ada’ Zeidler.

Ada, who was named after her great-grandmother, was born in Los Angeles on May 2, 1960, to journalist and TV host Nick Clooney and writer Nina Bruce Warren.

“A talented artist, she shared her skills as an elementary art teacher at Augusta Independent School for several years,” her obituary states. “In high school, her academic achievements qualified her to be a National Merit Scholar. Her love for reading connected her with other readers in a local book club. She was also a member of the Augusta Art Guild and was a past grand marshal of Augusta’s Annual White Christmas Parade.”

Ada later attended college in Louisville and Northern Kentucky and worked as a bookkeeper.

She married Norman Zeidler, a retired army captain, in Augusta on March 14, 1987. The whole family — and much of their small Kentucky hometown — were in attendance and took part in the ceremony, per the Kentucky Photo Archive.

Ernesto Ruscio/GC Images

George Clooney and sister Adelia ‘Ada’ Zeidler in Venice, Italy, in 2014

During the wedding, George read scripture, and the siblings’ aunt Rosemary Clooney sang a romantic song for the newlyweds. “The whole town helped with the wedding. We couldn’t have gotten through it without them,” the siblings’ mother, Nina, once said.

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Although Ada maintained a private life and didn’t often make public appearances, she attended her brother’s wedding to wife Amal Clooney in Venice, Italy, on Sept. 27, 2014.

Robino Salvatore/GC Images

George Clooney and sister Adelia ‘Ada’ Zeidler in Venice, Italy, in 2014

Ada was preceded in death by her husband, who died on Oct. 11, 2004, of a heart attack.

“In addition to her parents, she leaves behind her beloved children, Nick Zeidler and Allison Zeidler Herolaga and her husband, Kenny; her brother, George Clooney and his wife, Amal; and several uncles, aunts, and cousins,” the obituary concludes.

A funeral will be held for Ada on Monday, Dec. 22, and her obituary states that memorials are suggested to the Knoedler Memorial Library in Augusta.

Read the original article on People