Singer’s sister Frieda Parton ask for prayers amid ‘health challenges’
If country music legend Dolly Parton wrote a song about the last 48 hours, the title might be: I’m Not Dead Yet. Despite calls for prayers from his sister Freida and intense concern from fans, the 79-year-old music legend reassured the world that he was okay with those words.
“Do I look sick to you?” Parton said in a post on social media that she was filmed filming on set. “I work hard here! Anyway, I just wanted to reassure anyone who seemed really worried, which I appreciate,” Parton said. “I appreciate your prayers because I am a person of faith. I want you to know that I am okay.”
Dolly Parton had to cancel upcoming shows.Credit: Wade Payne/Invision/AP
“I have some problems,” Parton says in the video, admitting that her husband Carl Dean wasn’t taking care of himself when he passed away in March. “I let a lot of things go that needed my attention,” Parton said. “It’s no big deal, but I had to cancel some things to be closer to home… but I wanted you to know I’m not dead.”
Earlier, Parton’s sister Freida gave the world a lift after posting an emotional message to fans on social media on Wednesday morning (AEDT) after Parton canceled a string of appearances. “Last night, I woke up all night praying for my sister Dolly,” Freida Parton wrote on her Facebook page.
“Many of you know that he hasn’t been feeling well lately. I truly believe in the power of prayer and [am asking] I want the whole world who loves him to become a prayer warrior and pray with me. “He is strong, he is loved, and while prayers are being said for him, I know in my heart he will be okay. For God’s sake, my sissy Dolly. We all love you! ,” Freida Parton wrote.
Freida later released a statement in response to fans’ concerns about Parton’s well-being, saying she “didn’t mean to scare anyone or make it seem that serious” when asking for prayers for Dolly. “I just asked for prayers because I believe very strongly in the power of prayer. This was nothing more than a little sister asking for prayers for her older sister,” she wrote.
The story emerged after Parton canceled a series of Vegas shows in an alarming, albeit slightly sarcastic, post on Instagram on September 29. “As many of you know, I have been dealing with some health issues and my doctors are telling me I need to have a few procedures done,” he wrote. “As I joke with them, it must be time for my 100,000-mile checkup, though this isn’t a regular trip to see my plastic surgeon.”
The 79-year-old actor said fans pay “good money” to see him so he wants to do his best. “And don’t worry about me quitting because God hasn’t said anything about me quitting yet.”
