Joey Feek Has Died at Age 40

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Joey Feek has lost her battle to cancer. Part of the country duo Joey and Rory who recently released an album through Cracker Barrel,”Hymns &Stories That Are Important to Us” which debuted number one on the country charts.

Rory posted on his blog This is the Life I Live that his wife had died on Friday afternoon.

My wife’s greatest dream came true today. She is in Heaven.
The cancer is gone, the pain has ceased and all her tears are dry. Joey is in the arms of her beloved brother Justin and using her pretty voice to sing for her savior.
At 2:30 this afternoon, as we were gathered around her, holding hands and praying.. my precious bride breathed her last. And a moment later took her first breath on the other side.
As I held her hand and kissed her goodbye one last time… I was reminded of another dream of hers that came true. A few months ago through gracious help of Kathy Olen, a friend of ours in Nashville, and many others… I had been sent a short video that Dolly Parton had made for Joey.
From the time she was four years old, Joey had been singing Dolly’s songs and dreamed of one day meeting her. Coat of Many Colors was a regular part of our show and at home she loved to put on Dolly and listen to “Hello God”, “When I Sing For Him”, “Me and Little Andy” and many others. She never got the chance to meet her in person and had no idea that Dolly even knew who she was. But that changed one Friday evening this past November.
Joey’s family, Russdriver and I gathered around Joey’s bedside to watch the movie “Hope Floats” (one of the few movies Joey knew and loved) with her. But instead of pushing play on the DVD, I pushed play on the video I had received… and we all watched Joey watch. It was the most beautiful moment I have ever been part of…

Though this is, and has been, a time of many tears of sorrow, it has also been a time of countless tears of joy. There have been too many beautiful moments to count or even begin to share in this blog. But I try.
When a person has been through as much pain and struggle as Joey’s been through, you just want it to be over. You want them to not have to hurt anymore, more that you want them to stay with you. And so, it makes the hard job of saying goodbye just a little easier.
After four-and-a-half months in Indiana, we will soon be back home in Tennessee. Me, and our little one, with our older daughters. It’s hard for me to imagine being there without Joey, but at the same time… it is where she wants us to be. It’s where she will be… She’s gonna be in the mint growing beside our back deck, the sweet-corn frozen in our freezer and a million other places that her hand and heart has touched around our little farmhouse and community. Joey will still be with us. Everywhere.
So if it’s okay, I’m gonna close, wipe my tears and pack our bags to hit the road headed south.
She’s already got a head-start on me.

Joey moved to Nashville in 1998. After signing to Sony in 2000,she met Rory and then married in 2002. The couple lived in Pottsville,Tennessee.  In 2008,the couple entered a singing competition on CMT called Can You Duet where they placed third and became known as Joey + Rory.

The couple had their first child together in 2014. Four months after her daughter’s birth,Joey was diagnosed with cervical cancer.  In October, a CT scan revealed the disease had spread. Joey entered hospice in November and returned to her hometown in Indiana to be closer to family. Throughout this journey, they have celebrated milestones including their daughter’s second birthday and a GRAMMY nomination for their recently released album.

Throughout this journey the incredible dedication of this couple and their faith have demonstrated a love for each other and family that is often not seen.

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Donna Vissman
Donna is one of those former corporate types (Xerox) who wanted to try something new. She went from marketing to blogger and now Lifestyle Reporter, and is always on the lookout for what’s trending in restaurants, new stores, charity events, and entertainment. To keep up the pace, Donna is usually found drinking at least one Cold Brew coffee a day or on a busy day, make it two.