John Prine’s widow, Fiona Whelan Prine, is breaking her silence following the death of her country-folk singer husband after he died on Tuesday from complications of coronavirus.
Posting to Instagram alongside a photograph of the songwriting legend, Fiona wrote, “Our beloved John died yesterday evening at Vanderbilt Medical Center in Nashville TN. We have no words to describe the grief our family is experiencing at this time. John was the love of my life and adored by our sons Jody, Jack and Tommy, daughter in law Fanny, and by our grandchildren.”
She continued, “John contracted Covid-19 and in spite of the incredible skill and care of his medical team at Vanderbilt he could not overcome the damage this virus inflicted on his body.”
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View this post on Instagram From Fiona Whelan Prine… Our beloved John died yesterday evening at Vanderbilt Medical Center in Nashville TN. We have no words to describe the grief our family is experiencing at this time. John was the love of my life and adored by our sons Jody, Jack and Tommy, daughter in law Fanny, and by our grandchildren. John contracted Covid-19 and in spite of the incredible skill and care of his medical team at Vanderbilt he could not overcome the damage this virus inflicted on his body. I sat with John – who was deeply sedated- in the hours before he passed and will be forever grateful for that opportunity. My dearest wish is that people of all ages take this virus seriously and follow guidelines set by the CDC. We send our condolences and love to the thousands of other American families who are grieving the loss of loved ones at this time – and to so many other families across the world. Thank you from the bottom of our hearts for the outpouring of love we have received from family, friends, and fans all over the world. John will be so missed but he will continue to comfort us with his words and music and the gifts of kindness, humor and love he left for all of us to share. In lieu of flowers or gifts at this time we would ask that a donation be made to one of the following non profits: thistlefarms.org roomintheinn.org nashvillerescuemission.orgA post shared by John Prine (@john_prine) on Apr 8, 2020 at 7:33am PDT
She then added that she was able to sit with John during his final moments, noting that she is “forever grateful for that opportunity.”
“My dearest wish is that people of all ages take this virus seriously and follow guidelines set by the CDC,” she added. “We send our condolences and love to the thousands of other American families who are grieving the loss of loved ones at this time — and to so many other families across the world. Thank you from the bottom of our hearts for the outpouring of love we have received from family, friends, and fans all over the world. John will be so missed but he will continue to comfort us with his words and music and the gifts of kindness, humor and love he left for all of us to share.”
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Ending her tribute to her husband, Fiona asked that “in lieu of flowers or gifts,” donations be made to a number of non-profit organizations.
A representative previously confirmed to PEOPLE on behalf of Prine’s family that the musician died as a result of complications from the novel coronavirus.
Fiona, his wife of 23 years, was also diagnosed with COVID-19 earlier in March and had been keeping fans updated about Prine’s condition while he was in the hospital.
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On April 2, Fiona shared on Instagram that she was unable to be with Prine in the hospital’s intensive care unit in order to remain safe herself, which she said “makes this nightmare all the more distressing for me.”
“As you know, John was put on a ventilator last Saturday,” she wrote. “He still needs quite a bit of help with his breathing. Like many patients currently in ICU beds all around the world, John has pneumonia in both lungs. He has also developed some peripheral issues that are being treated with meds, including antibiotics.”
Fiona also thanked everyone for the “outpouring of love and prayers that John and family has received this last week.”
John is survived by Fiona and their three children.
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Source: People.com (https://people.com/country/john-prine-widow-fiona-whelan-prine-breaks-silence-we-have-no-words-describe-this-grief/)
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