Dolly Parton‘s younger sister, Stella, posted a tribute to the late country icon on Facebook on Thursday. “My sister was one of the most generous, thoughtful, and kind people I’ve ever known,” she wrote. In the lengthy post, she talked about how she kept in touch with Dolly, who was three years older than her.
“Every Tuesday about this time, before the sun came up and the world was still asleep, she and I for many years had our coffee together over the phone,” she wrote. “Being little farm girls we’ve continued to be early risers.” Stella wrote that the sisters would gossip and Dolly would joke, “We get more work done before the sun comes up than most folks do all day long!” Later in her missive, Stella acknowledged, “My Tuesday morning coffee time will never be the same but her love, respect, and goodness will remain.”
The public perception of Dolly as a generous person concerned for the future of humanity, Stella wrote, was “exactly who she was.” As an example, Stella wrote that Dolly once said that if she learned her health was terminal, she would allow doctors to try experimental drugs on her if it would help others in the future. “My sister was always thinking of others and if you want to honor her legacy, show more kindness, lift others up, and give more of your time and resources, as she continued to do to the very end,” she wrote.
Stella wrote that Dolly was a role model who encouraged her to focus on what matters most. “Dolly loved the world and everyone in it,” she wrote. “I would criticize and complain about it, and she would laugh and say, ‘Shoot, Tedda, we’ve got more important things to do than worry about their silly asses.’ She was right and she proved it every day.” In her closing, Stella wrote that Dolly “left the world a better place by being in it so let’s follow her example.”
Since Parton’s death on Tuesday following a cancer diagnosis, celebrities, politicians, and luminaries have mourned her loss. Every living president shared words of praise for Parton’s generosity and role in American culture. Meanwhile, Taylor Swift, Beyoncé, Kacey Musgraves and many others wrote about the effect she had on their lives. Others, including Jack White, Harry Styles, and John Mayer, performed her songs or acknowledged her loss at their concerts.
