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Former First Lady Melania Trump skipped the Trump family Christmas party at Mar-a-Lago along with the New Year’s Eve party and has not been making any public appearances recently. However, her husband and former U.S. President Donald Trump recently shared her whereabouts.
While addressing the public at his Palm Beach club in Florida on New Year’s Eve, Donald Trump stated that the reason Melania Trump was away from the limelight was because her mother Amalija Knav was “very ill” and admitted to a Miami hospital. The former First Lady is taking care of her ailing mother according to Donald Trump.
Donald Trump also added how Melania “sends her love” to everyone especially because she knew nearly "95 percent of the people in this room," and knew they would excuse her absence. He also wished his mother-in-law a speedy recovery.
For those uninitiated, Melania Trump was born in Novo Mesto and raised in Sevnica, Yugoslavia (now in Slovenia).
Everything you need to know about Melania Trump’s parents
Melania Trump was born to Viktor Knav (79) and Amalija Knav (78) and has an elder sister named Ines. Originally from Sevnica, Slovenia, they arrived in the USA in 2004 and have been permanent U.S. residents holding green cards for several years. They became naturalized citizens in August 2018 following an oath ceremony at the federal immigration office in New York City, as per Town and Country Magazine.
The source further cited that the Knav couple visits their hometown twice or thrice yearly and owns properties there. They met in 1966 Sevnica when Viktor was the mayor’s chauffeur and Amalija was a pattern-maker at a children’s clothing factory. Soon they got married and shifted into a small, two-bedroom flat. Later, Viktor became a traveling salesman for a car company and went on to buy it and make it his own business and had close ties with the ruling Communist Party.
Since Donald and Melania Trump shifted from New York City’s Trump Tower to the White House in the summer of 2017 along with their only child Barron, the Knavs too accompanied them. Since then, the former First Lady’s parents often traveled alongside the Trumps. In fact, during the 2020 Republican National Convention, the Knavs were seated right behind the then President and First Lady.
Melania expressed her gratitude to her parents as she stood on the podium at the White House Rose Garden in 2020 to deliver her speech. Here’s what she said.
"My parents worked very hard to ensure our family could not only live and prosper in America but also contribute to a nation that allows people to arrive with a dream and make it a reality. I want to take the moment to thank my mother and father for all that they have done for our family. It is because of you that I am standing here today."
As per Politico, Viktor and Amalija Knav were “hyperinvolved” in their grandson Barron’s life. They used to visit the home frequently when Donald Trump was in the White House, spending time both at Mar-a-Lago and Trump Tower. They even celebrated holidays together, be it Easter or Thanksgiving.
Exploring what Donald Trump said about his mother-in-law’s latest health condition
On New Year’s Eve in Mar-a-Lago, Donald Trump, dressed in a tux addressed the crowd saying that his wife Melania couldn’t be there to celebrate as she was with her “very ill” mother who was hospitalized in Miami.
He said,
“Hopefully she’ll be recovering… Hopefully, that’ll be okay, but it’s a tough one, a very tough one… We just want to wish Amalija gets better as quickly as possible."
He also added how he spoke to Melania just before going onstage and she sent her love and best wishes to everyone for the new year. An insider source even told Fox News Digital that Melania Trump has always been “devoted” to her entire family, hence it was not a surprise that she decided to spend the holiday season with her ill mother.
As per the news outlet, the 53-year-old former model would most likely also skip the presidential campaign for her husband in the days leading up to the 2024 election.
