Tribute to Dolly Parton

Hey everyone. My name is Brian Seaver, son of Cassie

Parton, and I'm representing the Parton

and Owens family today,

announcing the passing of my Aunt Dolly Rebecca Parton Dean.

Sister, sis, Aunt Granny to one generation,

and Gigi to the

next.

This video announcement is something Dolly asked of me years ago,

before I fully

absorbed it as a future reality.

As her head of security for more than two decades, a role my father Larry held

before me, I have imagined the heaviness of this

moment, but haven't truly felt it

until now. It is an honor, an honor that is mixed with

absolute pride and great sadness.

But sadness lies with us, not with Dolly.

Dolly has lived in the light, and is in the arms of Jesus, surely

met by Carl, her parents, and countless others who have watched her

and

longed for her to meet them in the heavens.

I first went on the road with Dolly as a kid, getting a taste of the road life in

the early 1980s. Dolly opened doors not just for me,

but for her entire family to reach the potential we didn't even know

was possible.

Dolly also opened doors for generations of singers, songwriters,

musicians, and dreamers from every walk of life,

and across every continent.

By her example, we believed that anything was possible.

She never saw a door she couldn't open, and the doors she opened made and

changed history.

My family and I have shared a lifetime of beautiful memories with Dolly,

but so have you. She has always been on your television,

your

record player, your CD, and on your phone playlist, becoming an

extended part of your family whether you liked it or not.

Our family and the team she has entrusted with her legacy will work diligently to

ensure her spirit will live with us forever.

Dolly was a farmer, just like her daddy.

He farmed the soil. She farmed songs and happiness.

Dolly called me and said she wants to rest in a beautiful bed of plush cotton,

because after a life wearing heavy rhinestones, she finally deserves to be

comfortable and have some rest.

Rest in peace, Aunt Dolly, Aunt Granny,

Gigi. May God bless Dolly Parton, and may God bless you all.

She will always love you.