Wynonna and Ashley Judd shared a heartbreaking statement on Saturday (April 30) announcing that their mother, Naomi, had passed away. She was 76 years old.
“Today we sisters experienced a tragedy,” read the statement. “We lost our beautiful mother to the disease of mental illness. We are shattered. We are navigating profound grief and know that as we loved her, she was loved by her public. We are in unknown territory.”
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Just one day after Naomi’s death, she and Wynonna were inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame for their work as The Judds. Wynonna and Ashely attended the ceremony and gave some emotional speeches about their mother’s life and legacy.
Wynonna vowed to keep singing in the aftermath of Naomi’s death. “Though my heart’s broken, I will continue to sing, because that’s what we do,” she said.
Naomi’s husband, Larry Strickland, is also a singer. They married in 1989, and would have celebrated their 33rd anniversary on May 6.
After Naomi passed away, her loved ones gathered on the sleeping porch at Ashley’s house. Ashley shared a short video on social media that shows Larry leading everyone in singing “How Great Thou Art” in tribute to Naomi. She said they were singing hymns that night as they grieved together.
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Ashley also reflected on The Judds’ induction into the Country Music Hall of Fame and shared some pictures from the ceremony:
“Your outpouring is reaching me,” Ashley wrote. “Thank you for every thought, prayer, message, text, email, post, expression. We each are alone and we are in fellowship, broken and held, protected from nothing and sustained in everything. It’s the beginning of an old story, life and death, loss and life. Be free, my beautiful mother. Be free.”
You can see Ashley’s post below. Flip through the slideshow to watch the video of Larry singing “How Great Thou Art.”
Our hearts and prayers go out to Wynonna, Ashley, Larry, and everyone who loved Naomi.