Dolly Parton expressed a wish for a profoundly private burial, according to her cousin.
The country music icon died on 25 August at the age of 80 after a brief struggle with an undisclosed form of cancer. She was subsequently laid to rest alongside her husband of 58 years, Carl Dean, within Nashville’s Woodlawn Memorial Park and Mausoleum on Friday.
Dolly’s cousin Richie Owens spoke about the funeral during an interview with NBC’s Today programme on Thursday.
“She wanted to keep it very quiet, and the ongoing talk about ‘a funeral’ keeps coming up. I don’t think that accurately reflects the situation,” Richie explained. “It was a burial to be beside her husband, and she desired it to be very small.”
The ceremony was attended by close family members, with Dolly’s nieces revealing on the show that only 10 relatives were present at the service.
“A few family members were there,” Richie said. “Other people, I’m sure, would have liked to be there, but they were perhaps engaged in other things. It was very quiet, carried out swiftly, and not for any negative reasons whatsoever. It’s simply what she wanted. She wished to keep it extremely, extremely private.”
The Jolene singer was also renowned for her charity work, having founded the Imagination Library in 1995 in memory of her late father, who never learned to read or write.
“She really cared about her charitable efforts. What you saw from Dolly is how she was in real life at home—someone personable, magical, incredibly giving. She didn’t switch it on and off. Dolly was always Dolly. She possessed the greatest sense of humor,” Richie praised.
He also confirmed that the 9 to 5 hitmaker kept her health struggles private, even from her own relatives.
“She’s always kept things private because she wanted to keep everyone feeling positive around her. And she put it out there to the world, ‘Don’t worry about me, I’m gonna be fine,’” he shared.
