Gise raised Jeff as a single mom, meeting Cuban immigrant Miguel Bezos, now 79, while she was going to night school and working during the day at a bank, said the tribute. They were married in 1968, with Bezos adopting her young son. They went on to have two more children, Christina and Mark.

"She passed away today, surrounded by so many of us who loved her," the Amazon founder wrote in a tribute for her.