Loretta Lynn and her family are no strangers to loss. In 1984, Loretta’s oldest son, Benny, died when he drowned at the age of 34. Years later, Loretta lost her oldest daughter, Betty, when she passed away in 2013 due to emphysema.
In addition to losing two of her six children, Loretta lost her husband of nearly 50 years, Oliver “Doo” Lynn, when he passed away in 1996 at the age of 69.
But while Loretta’s life has been marked by great loss, it has also been defined by great love. She has dozens of grandchildren, with one of the most famous being Tayla Lynn.
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The daughter of Loretta’s son Ernest, Tayla has made it her life’s mission to continue her grandmother’s legacy. A singer herself, Tayla performs all over the country, often covering her grandmother’s famous songs.
Recently, Tayla has been performing with Tre Twitty, the grandson of Loretta’s best friend and duet partner Conway Twitty. Together, the two sing their grandparents’ songs and duets, bringing their music to a whole new generation of country fans.
Most recently, Tayla and Tre performed together at Loretta’s ranch in Tennessee on Saturday (July 7). The concert was a big celebration of Loretta and Conway’s music, and was surely entertaining for all who attended. Loretta even called Tayla while she was on stage to say “hello” to everyone who showed up.
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But that celebration didn’t last for long.
The day after the concert (July 8), Tayla took to Instagram to share some heartbreaking news. Her mother, Cindy, had passed away that morning.
Tayla didn’t say much. She simply shared a photo of her mother, writing, “Mama. I miss you so much.”
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It was actually Tre who revealed a little more about what had happened to Cindy. In a post he wrote on Facebook to show some love to Tayla, he said that Cindy had passed away in her sleep.
“We were all cuttin up out at Loretta’s Saturday night, and she passed away in her sleep a few hours later,” he wrote. “Life can change so soon.”
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Our prayers go out to Tayla and her family as they mourn the devastating loss of her mother Cindy.
You can remember Cindy by watching the following video that Tayla shared of her on YouTube just last month. May she rest in peace.