Dolly Parton's Sister Stella Reveals Singer's Final Request Was Simply 'Prayer' Before Death

NASHVILLE, Tenn. — Dolly Parton's sister Stella Parton has revealed that the final request the country music legend made before her death was simply for prayer, offering a new glimpse into the singer's private final days during a recent appearance on "CBS Mornings."

"That's the last thing Dolly asked me for, was prayer," Stella recalled during the interview.

Parton died Aug. 25 at age 80 following what her family has described as a "brief battle with cancer," a diagnosis she kept hidden from fans and even some family members throughout much of her illness. Stella said the family would not be disclosing the specific type of cancer Dolly had, out of respect for her sister's wishes.

"Out of respect for her" since Dolly "didn't tell us that we could say it," Stella explained, adding that while she is comfortable speaking about her love for her sister, discussing the specifics of her health remains off-limits. "It's not my business to tell her business," Stella said.

Concerns over Parton's health first became public in September 2025, when she made the difficult decision to postpone a series of scheduled Las Vegas concerts, citing the need for medical procedures.

"I want the fans and public to hear directly from me that, unfortunately, I will need to postpone my upcoming Las Vegas concerts," Parton wrote online at the time. "As many of you know, I have been dealing with some health challenges, and my doctors tell me that I must have a few procedures."

Public concern intensified shortly afterward when another of Parton's sisters, Freida, asked fans to pray for Dolly, saying at the time that "many of you know she hasn't been feeling her best lately." According to Stella, that public comment did not sit well with Dolly herself.

"I think Dolly got on to Freida about that," Stella said. "I'm pretty sure Dolly said, 'You're going to, you know, pipe it down,' because that was the first time people thought 'Oh.' And she knew that Freida was just upset and hurt, but she thought, 'Don't be telling my situation, Freida. Don't be spilling my business.'"

Stella said her sister ultimately chose to keep her diagnosis private because she "could not bear negative things" and did not want her fans worrying about her condition.

Parton's death came just over a year after the death of her husband of nearly 60 years, Carl Dean, who died in March 2025 at age 82. While some fans and commentators have speculated that Dolly may have died of a broken heart following her husband's passing, Stella pushed back on that characterization.

"I think she was very sad, but I don't think that's why she got sick," Stella said. "I think she worked too hard and didn't maybe take as good a care of herself as she should have. She, at one point, she said, 'You know, I spent a lot of time caring for Carl that maybe I neglected myself.'"

Stella said watching Dean's decline before his death was painful for Dolly, but she ultimately believes her sister's relentless work ethic over so many decades played a larger role in her declining health. Stella described the couple's marriage as "very unique and very deep and loyal," crediting Dean for being supportive of Dolly throughout her career and loving "her enough to let her be what she was."

According to Stella, Dean had little interest in his wife's fame and would have preferred a much simpler life together, largely removed from the spotlight.

"Not after she got to be Dolly Parton. No. She would sleep in her makeup when she'd come spend the night with me," Stella said, describing how rarely even family members saw Dolly without her signature glamorous look once she became a star. "I knew what she looked like. She looked like me without her makeup. So, I knew what she looked like without it."

Stella also praised her sister's business acumen and her deliberate choice to avoid publicly sharing her personal political views, despite having opinions on politics and other controversial subjects.

"She would never have offended anyone," Stella said of her sister's approach.

Despite the difficulty of her final battle with cancer, Stella said she believes her sister found genuine peace in her last moments.

"She knew where she was going," Stella said. "She wasn't going anywhere bad. She was going to be with mom and daddy. She was prepared. Yeah, she was definitely prepared."

Reflecting on how she hopes the public remembers her sister, Stella described Dolly in warm, expansive terms.

"Very sweet, kind, loving, brilliant and so talented," Stella said. "Her creativity had no bounds, and she could dream bigger than anybody. And I want young people, young girls and boys that may think they have no opportunity to dream. Coming from our situation, she gave us permission to dream that way."

Parton's death drew an outpouring of tributes from across the country music industry and beyond, with fellow artists, family members and fans continuing to reflect on her decadeslong career and personal legacy in the weeks since her passing. Her sister's recent comments offer one of the more detailed and personal accounts yet of Parton's final days, underscoring both the privacy she maintained around her illness and the deep family bonds that remained central to her throughout her final battle with cancer.