On July 6, country music legend Charlie Daniels unexpectedly passed away at the age of 83 following a hemorrhagic stroke. He was laid to rest on Friday, July 10.
Charlie is survived by his wife of 55 years, Hazel, and their only child, son Charlie Jr.
Just three days before his death, Charlie published his final post to his “Soapbox” on his official website. Charlie used his Soapbox to share his thoughts on politics and the state of the world.
The day after Charlie’s funeral, Charlie Jr. published his own post to his father’s Soapbox to let people know how he’s been coping.
“I think it goes without saying, that this has been the worst week of my life, bar none,” Charlie Jr. wrote. “The man I’ve known for 55 years, who, along with my mom, have always been there for me is gone. We’re still shell-shocked.”
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Charlie Jr. then went into detail about the morning of his father’s death. “It started at 5:45 AM when mom called me crying and said that I needed to get up to their house right now, that dad was sick,” he wrote.
Because of the current state of the world, Charlie Jr.’s first thought was that his dad had contracted COVID-19. He instantly grew concerned he may have unknowingly passed the virus along to his father, even though he hadn’t hugged him in four months and was always masked in his presence.
But after Charlie Jr. arrived at his parents’ house, it became clear that something else was wrong.
“…dad was slumped over in his chair, I asked him if he could breathe, he nodded and tried to say yes, but it was obvious that he was very weak,” Charlie Jr. recalled. “I called 911, and while I was on with them, mom called dad’s cardiologist and rather than COVID-19, he told mom that he thought he was having a stroke which I relayed to the 911 operator.”
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Charlie’s manager, David Corlew, followed Charlie Jr., who followed the ambulance to Summit Medical Center. Upon their arrival, someone came to talk to them about Charlie’s condition.
“It wasn’t good,” Charlie Jr. said. “He told us that dad had a massive stroke, and that because of the blood thinner he was on he wasn’t clotting.”
Charlie Jr. went on to explain, “Because his blood wasn’t clotting, the blood kept pouring into his brain stem.”
Doctors tried to give Charlie medicine to reverse the effects of the blood thinner and stop the bleeding. But it was too late. He passed away at 9:52 AM that morning.
“He was the strongest man I’ve ever known,” Charlie Jr. said. “The best father, the best boss, the best friend I could ever ask for. My mom and I miss him terribly.”
Our hearts go out to Hazel and Charlie Jr. during this sad time. May Charlie rest in peace.