Dolly Parton’s husband of nearly 60 years, Carl Dean, died Monday in Nashville, Tenn.
He was 82.
Parton, 79, shared the news in a statement posted to Instagram Monday evening.
“Carl Dean, husband of Dolly Parton, passed away March 3rd in Nashville at the age of 82,” the statement read.
“He will be laid to rest in a private ceremony with immediate family attending. He was survived by his siblings Sandra and Donnie.”
The statement included a quote from his widow, who shared, “Carl and I spent many wonderful years together. Words can’t do justice to the love we shared for over 60 years. Thank you for your prayers and sympathy.”
The Grammy-winning country star and her loved ones have “asked for privacy during this difficult time.”
Parton and Dean — who was retired from running an asphalt road-paving business in Nashville, where he was born — wed on July 20, 1942, in Georgia.
The couple was notoriously private, with Parton even joking that Dean had only ever seen her perform once.
However, behind closed doors, Dean was romantic, as Parton has told how he was spontaneous, would surprise her with sweet gestures and even wrote her poems.
“We’re really very proud of our marriage,” the singer-songwriter gushed in 2011. “It’s the first for both of us — and the last.”
Though Parton — one of 12 — and Dean did not have any children together, he helped raise several of her younger siblings, leading her nieces and nephews to refer to them “Aunt Granny” and “Uncle Peepaw.”