DOLLY PARTON’S SISTER PAYS TRIBUTE TO THE WOMAN WHO CAN NEVER BE REPLACED
Freida Parton has paid tribute to her sister Dolly Parton, who died at age 80, in a Facebook post. She asked for prayers for their family and said no one could ever take the singer’s place in their hearts.
The post was published on Saturday, Aug. 29, four days after the death of the “Jolene” singer. According to PEOPLE, Dolly Parton’s team said she died after a brief battle with cancer.
To the public, Dolly Parton was a global star. To Freida, she was first and foremost a sister who held a central place in her life. The 69-year-old said Dolly became a mother figure to her during her teenage years.
A relationship beyond fame
In her post, Freida Parton thanked people online for giving her time while she mourns her older sister. She recalled Dolly climbing into bed with her when they were children because both girls were afraid of the dark.
She also remembered how Dolly helped raise her from the ages of 13 to 18. In Freida’s eyes, her sister had become a stand-in mother. Freida even called her “Dolly Momma.”
Dolly had once tried to persuade Freida to wear her wigs when Freida performed at Dollywood. Freida never went along with the idea, but now remembers it fondly.
Like many siblings, the two women also had disagreements. Freida acknowledged that they sometimes argued over the years. Those moments never changed the love she had for her sister.
She said her family must now learn to live with an absence she sees as impossible to fill. Dolly Parton mattered deeply to her relatives, but also to the fans who followed her for decades.
A tribute in the works
Freida Parton wants to carry on what Dolly taught her. She said she hopes to keep smiling, loving others and sharing the generosity her sister offered so freely.
She admitted that this will be difficult on some days. Still, she is working on a memorial project for Dolly Parton’s fans. She did not reveal what it will involve. Freida described it as a way to keep part of her sister close while allowing the public to continue honoring her memory.
Last fall, Freida had already asked the public to pray for Dolly Parton. The singer had postponed her planned Las Vegas residency because of unspecified health problems. Freida later tried to reassure fans, saying she did not want to cause unnecessary alarm.
A family of twelve children
Dolly Parton grew up in a family of twelve children in Tennessee. Her parents, Robert Lee Parton and Avie Lee Parton, raised Willadeene, David, Coy, Bobby, Stella, Cassie, Randy, Larry, twins Freida and Floyd, Rachel and Dolly.
Several members of the family have already died. David died in 2024 at age 82. Coy died in July, also at 82. Randy died in 2021 at age 67, while Floyd died in 2018 at age 61. Larry died as an infant in 1955.
The family has already endured several closely spaced losses. In June, Stella Parton told PEOPLE that the deaths of her brothers David, Randy and Floyd had been especially hard to bear. She described a family tied together by strong emotional bonds and said grief had slowed her writing.
Stella honored Floyd by recording a version of Ben E. King’s “Stand by Me.” She said she had been especially close to him and had sometimes felt she played a maternal role in his life.
She also spoke regularly with Dolly. The two sisters called each other early in the morning for conversations they referred to as their kaffeeklatsch. Stella said humor had an important place in their family, even during difficult times. In her view, Dolly was used to stepping back and finding a reason to laugh without dismissing hardship.
Grief continues
Tributes to Dolly Parton are also continuing onstage. Jada Star, Freida’s daughter, took part last week in an event at Nashville’s Grand Ole Opry in memory of her aunt. She performed “The Orchard.”
The song had previously appeared on Smoky Mountain DNA: Family, Faith and Fables, a collaborative family album released in 2024. Jada Star had performed it with Dolly Parton.
The singer also worked professionally with her sister Rachel Parton George. The two women published the cookbook Good Lookin’ Cookin’ in 2024. Dolly recalled the family meals of her childhood, when all the children gathered around the table after their father returned from work.
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