Who was Vania Nonnenmacher? Gisele Bündchen’s mother’s cause of death explored

Vania Nonnenmacher, the mother of Gisele Bündchen, has passed away at the age of 75 after battling cancer. According to Hospital Moinhos de Vento, Nonnenmacher succumbed to cancer on Sunday, January 28, 2024, at the hospital in Porto Alegre, Brazil, following her admission on Friday.

A retired banker, Vania Nonnenmacher was the wife of Valdir Bündchen, a university professor. She was not only the mother of the renowned supermodel Gisele Bündchen but also of five other siblings, including her twin sister Patricia and her sisters Rafaela, Graziela, Gabriela, and Raquel.

The wake for Vânia Nonnenmacher is set to take place at the Metropolitan Crematorium in Porto Alegre's Ecumenical Chapel on Monday morning, followed by a farewell ceremony.

Requests for comments from fans have not received an immediate response from a representative for Bündchen. As of now, Gisele has not addressed the passing of her mother.

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Exploring Vania Nonnenmacher's life: Marriage, children, and more

Vania Nonnenmacher, who was married to Valdir Bündchen, led a fulfilling life surrounded by her six daughters, including Gisele and her twin Patricia, along with Rafaela, Gabriela, Graziela, and Raquel.

According to reports from the Brazilian news outlet GHZ, Vania Nonnenmacher worked as a bank teller in Horizontina, Brazil, all while managing the upbringing of her six children with her husband Valdir Bündchen.

In 1993, Nonnenmacher played a pivotal role in launching the modeling careers of Gisele Bündchen, her twin Patricia, and Gabriela by enrolling them in a professional course.

Despite Gisele initially aspiring to become a volleyball player, their paths shifted after completing the course. The trio traveled to Rio de Janeiro, where Gisele's talent caught the attention of Elite Model Management in a shopping center, marking the beginning of her successful modeling career.

Throughout the years, Bündchen has consistently shared images and cherished memories of her mother on social media, showcasing the close bond they shared.

From heartfelt Mother's Day celebrations on May 2023 to a family reunion snapshot shared on Instagram in September, Gisele, along with her siblings, posed with Nonnenmacher and husband Valdir Bündchen at a roundtable, creating a poignant display of familial love and togetherness.

As per Yahoo! Entertainment, In a conversation with Harper's Bazaar during a cover shoot, Gisele warmly recounted a memory of her mother, highlighting how she served as inspiration for her meal planning. She said:

"If we had [a] barbecue on Sundays, all the rest of the meat would go to arroz carreteiro on Mondays, which was just rice and meat mixed with some onions and tomatoes."

According to People, Bündchen had previously written about her mother, Vania Nonnenmacher, in a 2010 blog entry, shortly after welcoming her first child, 14-year-old Benjamin, with her ex-husband Tom Brady. Following this, she and Brady welcomed their daughter Vivian Lake, who is now 11 years old.

“I grew up witnessing my mother always trying her best at doing all she could for the six of us girls. My mom devoted her entire life to her family and did it with such grace,” she wrote on International Women's Day."

She added:

“She is my hero. She is the reason why I believe a woman is the core of a family … I can only hope to be for my kids what she will and always be for us … Our rock.”

Vania Nonnenmacher was battling cancer and was admitted to Hospital Moinhos de Vento in Porto Alegre on Friday, January 26. Unfortunately, she passed away despite medical efforts.