jenny wallenda , 87 , the matriarch of the famous family of high-flying circus performers , died late saturday at her home in sarasota , florida .
her nephew , rick wallenda , said his aunt died following a lengthy illness .
wallenda was the oldest daughter of high wire walker karl wallenda and grandmother of daredevil performer nik wallenda .
nik wallenda has walked over the grand canyon and over chicago .
jenny wallenda walked the high wire as an adult and performed on bareback horses as a child .
she also advocated for causes important to the circus community in her later years and helped create the circus ring of fame .