Dolly Parton said goodbye to her dear brother Coy “Denver” Parton almost exactly one month before her own passing. Denver, the third of the 12 Parton children, died on July 23, 2025, at the age of 82.
According to an obituary published by Atchley Funeral Home in Sevierville, Tennessee, Denver spent many years as a crane operator building bridges. He was also a hunter and homestead farmer. A cause of death was not specified.
Seen on the far right in the back row of the below vintage photo, Denver was preceded in death by his wife, Carolyn Parton. He left behind two daughters, Chris and Jennifer, along with a grandson, Ian.
Dolly Did Not Publicly Address the Death of Her Brother Denver, Who Died a Few Months After Her Husband
Dolly didn’t speak out in any public channels about the loss of Denver. His death came almost 4 months after Dolly’s husband of almost 59 years died from undisclosed causes following a period of illness.
Dolly later said she’d put her own health on the backburner while caring for Carl.
Although Dolly stayed silent on Denver’s death, her sister Stella spoke out in a statement to People that read in part, “Siblings are closer than anyone, really, because you’ve had them with you your whole life. I didn’t realize it would be such a painful experience.” She also said she finds accepting the loss of a sibling much harder than accepting her parents’ passing.
How Many Parton Siblings Are Still Alive? The 6 Brothers & Sisters Dolly Parton Left Behind
Including Dolly, 6 of the 12 Parton siblings have passed away, and 6 remain living .The first sibling to pass on was Dolly’s baby brother Larry, born in 1955, who lived for only 4 days.
Dolly reflected on the loss in her 2020 book “Songteller: My Life in Lyrics.” She said her mother had pre-assigned her to Larry’s care, telling her, “This is going to be your baby.” After planning and working “so hard to be ready” for the little boy’s arrival, Dolly says his death “just absolutely crushed me,” and added, “It was like I’d lost a baby of my own.”
She said she never forgot seeing Larry in his tiny coffin, and his memory always came to mind when she sang her tracks “Jeannie’s Afraid of the Dark” and “Me and Little Andy,” which both touch on child loss.
The next Parton sibling to pass away was Floyd, who died in 2018 at 61. He was followed by 67-year-old Randy in 2021, who died following a battle with cancer. David passed away next at age 82 in 2024.
Dolly and her deceased brothers are survived by their 5 sisters and and a brother.
The oldest siblings is Willadeene, who is now 86. In 1996, she authored a book about her famous family titled “Smoky Mountain Memories: Stories from the Hearts of the Parton Family.” She’s seen 3rd from the left in the above photo.
Stella, born 3 years after Dolly, is a country music singer. She is seen performing in the throwback clip below. She also enjoys giving commentary on current events, once joking, “Dollywood but Stella wouldn’t” on the topic of keeping her “mouth shut.”
Cassie, born in 1951, is the mother of Bryan Seaver, Dolly’s nephew and head of security who announced her death in Tuesday’s heartbreaking video.
Freida, who followed in Dolly’s footsteps as a songwriter and musician, is currently 69 years old. The youngest sibling, Rachel, is 66.
