The matriarch of the Kennedy family, Ethel Kennedy, 96, was hospitalized after suffering a stroke

Ethel Kennedy, matriarch of one of America's most famous political families, was hospitalized after suffering a stroke, her family said Tuesday.

The 96-year-old widow of assassinated Sen. Robert F. Kennedy and mother of Robert F. Kennedy Jr. was asleep Thursday when she suffered the stroke and is now being treated at a hospital, according to a statement from her grandson, former Massachusetts Rep. Joe Kennedy III.

“She is comfortable, receiving the best care possible and surrounded by her family,” the statement said. “She is, as you may know, a strong woman who has lived a remarkably full life. We are here and we will take care of them.”

She spent the summer enjoying time with her large family, her grandson said.

Ethel Kennedy had eleven children between 1951 and 1968. Her last child was born six months after her husband was fatally shot in a Los Angeles hotel.

Months after Robert F. Kennedy's death, she helped found a human rights center on her husband's behalf dedicated to promoting his legacy.

In 2014, former President Barack Obama awarded Ethel Kennedy the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the U.S. government's highest civilian honor, for her work on various causes, including human rights, environmental protection and social justice.