Melinda Gates encourages fans to ‘reflect on your own resilience’ in powerful Mother’s Day message following separation from Bill Gates

Melinda Gates has shared a powerful Mother's Day message with her fans, less than a week after she and husband Bill Gates announced their separation to the world. 

The powerhouse couple revealed their plans to divorce in a joint statement on May 3, despite putting in ‘a lot of work’ to keep their 27-year marriage together. 

On Sunday, Melinda paid a sweet tribute to their three children, Phoebe, 18, Rory, 21, and Jennifer, 25—before encouraging others to find meaning on the sentimental holiday. 

"I love being their mother," she wrote on her Twitter page. "Whatever Mother's Day means to you—a day to celebrate a mom, honor a memory, or reflect on your own resilience—I hope your day is a meaningful one."

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The touching post, which has garnered over 3,000 likes since its upload, included a throwback photo of Melinda hugging her teenage kids in an outdoor setting. Now all grown up, it seems the Gates offspring are still close to their mother. Jennifer, the eldest of the trio, honored her mom in a gushing Instagram post on Sunday.

"Our queen, hero and mom - every day!" she captioned a photo of the family—sans Bill—snapped at an unconfirmed sunny location. The Microsoft heiress is currently in her second year of medical school in New York City, thousands of miles from her parents' residence in Washington state. 

Despite the physical distance, Jennifer's relationship with Melinda remains tight-knit. As well as posting an Instagram story in support of mothers 'grieving a loss', she has asked for privacy for herself and her loved ones—likely to protect her mom from media scrutiny during this 'challenging time.' 

"I'm still learning how to best support my own process and emotions as well as my family members at this time and am grateful for the space to do so," she wrote in a message to her 427k followers.

Why are Bill and Melinda Gates divorcing? 

Bill and Melinda Gates announced their divorce in a joint statement on Twitter, citing an inability 'to grow together' as the reason behind the separation. The exact details of the split remain unknown—but insiders say that the split was coming for a long time now. 

According to the Wall Street Journal, Melinda had been planning to leave Bill for years, having first contacted divorce lawyers in 2019. The legal calls reportedly occurred around the same time that the New York Times first published details on Bill's meetings with Jeffrey Epstein, the disgraced financier who was convicted of soliciting teenage girls in 2008. The WSJ also reported that Bill and Melinda had been working with a mediator since 2020 to divide up their colossal $130 billion fortune. 

What will happen to the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation?

The couple established a non-profit organization, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, in 2000. The foundation, which works towards the eradication of poverty and diseases worldwide, will continue operating as normal despite the divorce. In their joint statement, Bill and Melinda confirmed that they will 'continue to work together at the foundation' following their split.