Bill and Melinda Gates’ daughter Jennifer tells of ‘challenging time’ in heartbreaking post as parents announce divorce
BILL and Melinda Gates' daughter Jennifer opened up about the "challenging time" her family is facing after her parents announced their divorce.
The ex-couple, who were married for 27 years, on Monday.
Shortly thereafter, Jennifer, 25, took to Instagram to ask for privacy for her family during this "challenging stretch of time."
"I'm still learning how to best support my own process and emotions as well as family members at this time, and I am grateful for the space to do so," she wrote in a story.
"I won't personally comment further on anything around the separation, but please know that your kind words and support mean the world to me."
and Melina Gates both shared a statement to their social media channels announcing the divorce on Monday, saying that they decided to end the marriage after a "great deal of thought and a lot of work"
The statement goes on to say that the former couple raised "three incredible children" and worked to help people all over the world with their philanthropy work.
Jennifer is the eldest of the Gates' three children. Her brother, Rory, is 22 and her sister, Phoebe, is 19.
Jennifer, a Stanford graduate, took a year off to focus on her equestrian career before attending Mount Sinai's Icahn School of Medicine in New York.
She is engaged to Egyptian equestrian Nayel Nassar.
After posting the heartbreaking message about her family, Jennifer reposted the statement about the divorce that her mom had posted to Instagram.
She also thanked her followers for "understanding our desire for privacy while we navigate the next phases of our lives."
Bill and Melinda's statement said they would continue to work together on the foundation they started in 2000 and their philanthropic work.
"We continue to share a belief in that mission and will continue our work at the foundation, but we no longer believe we can grow together as a couple in this next phase of our lives," the statement said.
Divorce documents obtained by The Sun show that and that she said the marriage was "irretrievably broken."
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"We ask the court to dissolve our marriage and find that our marital community ended on the date stated in our separation contract," the documents say.
There also , as the filing states that the only written agreement that relates to the divorce is the aforementioned separation contract.
Melinda does not appear to be asking for any spousal support from , whose said to be worth about $124billion.