Bill Gates Sr. dies

William H. Gates II, the father of Microsoft founder William Henry Gates III, who is more widely known as Bill Gates, has died at the age of 94.

The tech leader confirmed the news in a statement on late Tuesday, calling his father, who was known for his work as an attorney in Seattle, the “real” Bill Gates. 

“He was everything I try to be and I will miss him every day,” he tweeted.

My dad was the “real” Bill Gates. He was everything I try to be and I will miss him every day.https://t.co/OnAEsmosNb

— Bill Gates (@BillGates) September 15, 2020

In statement reacting to his father’s death on his blog Tuesday evening, Gates said his father died “peacefully at home” the day before while “surrounded by his family.”

“My dad’s passing was not unexpected—he was 94 years old and his health had been declining—so we have all had a long time to reflect on just how lucky we are to have had this amazing man in our lives for so many years,” he continued. 

Gates, one of the world’s richest software developers and philanthropists, wrote in his blog that his father had a “quiet influence [on] almost everything” he’s ever done.

“In Microsoft’s early years, I turned to him at key moments to seek his legal counsel,” Gates wrote, while also adding that his father “played a similar role” for former Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz by “helping him out at a key juncture in his business life.”

Gates also said his father, whom he described as one of “the hardest-working and most respected lawyers in Seattle [and a] major civic leader,” had a “profound influence” on his drive and philanthropic endeavors.

“The experience of being the son of Bill Gates was incredible. People used to ask my dad if he was the real Bill Gates. The truth is, he was everything I try to be. I will miss him every day,” he wrote at the end of his blog.

The tech leader’s wife, former Microsoft general manager and philanthropist Melinda Gates, also mourned the loss of her father-in-law in a tweet later on Tuesday.

“I am heartbroken about the passing of Bill Gates Sr. It is difficult to overstate what he meant to me, to our family, and to our foundation,” she wrote. “Bill Sr. liked to say, in characteristic modesty, that the secret to his success was simply ‘showing up.’”

I am heartbroken about the passing of Bill Gates Sr. It is difficult to overstate what he meant to me, to our family, and to our foundation. Bill Sr. liked to say, in characteristic modesty, that the secret to his success was simply “showing up.”

— Melinda Gates (@melindagates) September 15, 2020