Randy Parton, Dolly Parton’s younger brother, died at the age of 67 earlier this week, as reported by The Christian Post.
“My brother Randy has lost his battle with cancer. The family and I are grieving his loss but we know he is in a better place than we are at this time,” said Dolly on her Facebook page. “We are a family of faith and we believe that he is safe with God and that he is joined by members of the family that have gone on before and have welcomed him with joy and open arms.”
Randy partnered with his sister several times, most notably on his final song on Dolly’s 2020 Christmas album, “You Are My Christmas.” Dolly said her brother “shined on it just like he’s shining in heaven now.” She wrote the song for her brother, “our Christmas baby,” according to CNN.
He also headed his own show at Dollywood in 1986 and hit several chart records.
“His duet with me on ‘Old Flames Can’t Hold a Candle to You’ will always be a highlight in my own career,” Dolly said.
The eighth of 12 kids, Randy was raised in a faith-filled family in the Tennessee Smoky Mountains.
“We grew up in the church and my grandpa was a Pentecostal preacher,” Parton said in a previous interview with The Christian Post. “So healing and praying and being anointed and all that stuff, that was nothing new to us, ‘cause we survived because of our faith in God to get us through and all that.”
He is survived by his wife Deb, daughter Heidi, son Sabyn, and grandsons Huston and Trent.
Dolly, who recently turned 75, said her faith keeps her going in difficult times.
“I live on spiritual energy, creative and spiritual energy, because I do go a lot,” she said. “It’s like, only when you go through family problems or heartaches [that] you actually have to lean on God for even more.”
Photo courtesy: ©Getty Images/Rich Fury/Staff
Mikaela Mathews is a freelance writer and editor based in Dallas, TX. She was the editor of a local magazine and a contributing writer for the Galveston Daily News and Spirit Magazine.
