Dolly Parton’s Special Wedding Gift to Ashley Judd’s Parents Revealed in Touching Tribute

Ashley Judd honored Dolly Parton with a touching tribute recalling the custom wedding gift Parton had made for her parents, Naomi Judd and Larry Strickland.

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NEED TO KNOW

Dolly Parton died on Aug. 25, 2026

Ashley Judd shared a heartfelt tribute to Parton, reflecting on her friendship with her late mother, Naomi Judd

The Kiss the Girls actress revealed that Parton had a special wedding gift made for her parents

Ashley Judd is paying tribute to “Aunt” Dolly Parton.

Following Parton’s death at 80 on Tuesday, Aug. 25, the actress, 58, posted a heartfelt tribute to the legendary singer-songwriter and country music icon on Instagram, remembering her friendship with her late mother, Naomi Judd.

The Double Jeopardy star reflected on her relationship with “Aunt Dolly,” highlighting the special bond the “9 to 5” singer shared with Naomi, who died by suicide at 76 in 2022. The pair’s connection went far beyond their careers as country music singers. Ashley revealed that to celebrate Naomi’s marriage to Larry Strickland in 1989, Parton went the extra mile by having a special wedding gift custom-made for her dear friend.

“Of the many things I could say, I’ll just share this: for Mom and Pop’s wedding, she had a double wedding ring quilt made for them,” Ashley wrote on Wednesday, Aug. 26, alongside a photo of Parton, Naomi and half-sister Wynonna Judd holding the one-of-a-kind blanket. “That kind of says it all, doesn’t it?”

Ashley Judd/Instagram

Ashley’s carousel featured other photos and videos of Parton over the course of her decades-long career, including a clip of the “Jolene” singer going off script to pay tribute to Naomi and Loretta Lynn, who she said “were like sisters to me,” with an impromptu performance of “Precious Memories” while hosting the ACM Awards in 2023.

In her caption, Ashley continued to share how much her late mother admired Parton.

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“Aunt Dolly, my mother loved and revered you. She idolized you,” she wrote. “She was smitten that you shared a birthdays were so close (11 and 19 January 1946).”

Naomi introduced Ashley to the Steel Magnolias star’s music when she was just 8 years old, having saved up and taken her to see Parton for her “first concert” in Oakland, California. Ashley had been sleeping on Naomi’s lap when she first heard Parton’s voice.

“I jolted upright from my mother’s lap like a saved sinner in a tent revival,” the Kiss the Girls actress recalled. “That was the first thing I learned about Aunt Dolly: Her voice revived. The second thing I learned? Dolly Parton was smart.”

She added, “After that concert, I learned the lyrics to every song on the album and would dance, dance, dance, playing it front to back and back to front. I’d call my little friend in California, whom I missed, and we would play the record through the telephone and ‘dance’ together.”

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Ashley went on to praise Parton’s music that moved fans around the globe and her far-reaching philanthropy. Over her career, the country icon did it all: She released 50 albums exploring many genres, won 11 Grammys and three Emmys, wrote 25 No. 1 hits, starred in timeless films, dedicated her fortune to philanthropy, and even opened her own theme park.

“Her vocal genius was matched by her extraordinary songwriting, which was the actual source of her fortune,” Ashley wrote. “She knew singers got cheated by record labels, but if she wrote her own music, she would keep the money from songwriting royalties. Then she took that good, smart money she made and gave books away to children who grew up the way she had.”

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Parton was admitted to the hospital on Friday, Aug. 21, and died there four days later following a “brief battle with cancer,” her reps confirmed in a statement to PEOPLE. The type of cancer was not disclosed. Her death was announced by her nephew and head of security, Bryan Seaver, in a video posted on Instagram.

“Dolly also opened doors for generations of singers, songwriters, musicians and dreamers from every walk of life and across every continent,” Seaver said in part in his video message. “By her example, we believed that anything is possible. She never saw a door she couldn’t open, and the doors she opened made and changed history.”

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