Dolly Parton sings ‘I will always love you’ to dying fan whose wish was to meet her
CNN, KSL
By David Williams, CNN
(CNN) — After LeGrand “LG” Gold was diagnosed with Stage IV colorectal cancer, the Utah man put together a list of things he hoped to do in the time he had left.
Meeting Dolly Parton was number 7 on “LG’s List of Living,” which was written in black marker on a napkin.
The country legend called LG and talked to him and his wife, just before Christmas – making that wish come true.
“I’ve heard you’ve been a fan of mine for many years. And I just wanted to thank you for that,” Parton told Gold during the call. His wife Alice posted video of the conversation on social media.
“It’s been my honor too,” Gold replied with a big smile on his face.
He told Parton that she’s been a huge help – “especially these last few years.”
Gold told CNN affiliate KSL that his doctors recently told him that the chemotherapy and radiation were no longer working and that he should go home to be with his family.
Alice said to Parton that her husband has been a fan of her music his entire life, and that his family had season passes to her Dollywood amusement park. She added that their three children all got books from Parton’s Imagination Library program.
“I’m just happy that we get to kind of have our journey together in this lifetime,” Parton said in the call. “I always want to make people happy with my music and with the things I do and the things I say and I’m just happy to know that I’ve touched your life in some way. So thank you for honoring me with that.”
Alice posted the “List of Living” on LG’s Facebook page in December 2022.
In addition to meeting Parton, it also included going on an RV trip to the Grand Canyon with their kids, March Madness, going to a Natalie Merchant concert, and seeing “TNT Inside the NBA.”
Alice told CNN that she’s not sure how word of the list got to Parton.
“We had many friends say they gave it to her people and even had friends reach out to politicians in the state of Tennessee at the recommendation of the Nashville mayor’s office,” she told CNN.
She says a story on her husband by CNN affiliate KSL went viral and is probably what reached Parton’s team.
Parton ended the call by telling Gold that “I will always love you.”
“I should have sung that,” she added, before starting to sing.
“I will always love you,” she sang. “I will always love LG.”
The-CNN-Wire
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