Joey and Rory Feek: Their Love Story

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'The Pain Has Ceased'

Joey Feek died at age 40 on Friday, March 4, 2016, surrounded by her loved ones. "My wife's great dream came true today. She is in Heaven," her husband, Rory Feek, wrote on his blog. "The cancer is gone, the pain has ceased and all her tears are dry."

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A True Fighter

Joey was first diagnosed with cervical cancer in 2014, and it returned as stage 4 in 2015. The country singer bravely announced in October 2015 that she would forgo any further chemotherapy treatment and instead live out her final days in a hospice.

“I pray that one morning I just don’t wake up,” the singer told The Tennessean. “I don’t fear anything because I’m so close to God and we’ve talked about it so many times. I know he’s close.”

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A Love That Knows No Bounds

Rory Feek remained adamantly by his wife’s side, documenting the ups and downs of their home life on his blog, This Life I Live, and on Facebook.

“Sometimes there just aren’t enough surgeries — or doctors — or chemotherapies — or prayers,” he wrote shortly after Joey halted all treatments. “And you have to wipe the tears from your cheeks and say the words that you were hoping to never have to say … Enough.”

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Bedtime Kisses

The couple welcomed their daughter, Indiana, to the world in February 2014, and celebrated her turning 22 months old in December 2015 with a series of adorable photos featuring the little girl giving her proud mama sweet smooches.

“birthday bed-time kisses from Mama,” Rory captioned the touching photos. “Good night little one, today you are 22 months old.”

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Mommy and Me

Rory recalled an emotional moment that Joey had during the first snowfall of the winter in November 2015, in which the ailing country singer broke down over the thought of not being there to watch their little girl grow up.

“And then through her tears, she said the words … the ones I knew she felt, but she had never said before … the words that are the hardest, most-difficult part of all that she, and we, are going through,” Rory wrote. “‘I want to raise our baby,’ she cried, and her tears fell harder. ‘I want to be the one to teach her.’”

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Beginnings

Joey and Rory first met in 2002 at a songwriter night in Nashville, Tennessee, where Rory was playing, and they tied the knot just months later.

“Not to make you sick or nothing, but Rory and I are best friends,” Joey told the Country Standard Times in 2010. “We got into this relationship and got married right away. It was just one of those things where we knew that we were supposed to be together and every minute of our lives has been a blessing.”

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Replica Luxury Handbag at Last

Rory shared a touching post to his blog in late January as he reflected back upon his 14-year relationship with Joey and how inseparable they had become over the years.

“I cannot even begin to imagine going home to Tennessee without Joey, or living my life and raising Indy without her … but chances are, that day is coming,” he wrote on January 28.

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Cutting a Rug

The husband-and-wife duo tried to stay positive even in the darkest hours. In late November, Rory shared a sweet update about how he and Joey had shared one last dance together.

“A few days ago, on the last day Joey walked, I took her in my arms in the living room and once more put her hand in mine and we danced,” he wrote. “She steadied with her cane and I softly moved her across the room singing George Strait’s ‘You Look So Good In Love’ in her ear.”

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Puppy Love

Joey had some very unusual visitors by her bedside on January 27 — several furry pups who showered the country singer with kisses.

“some baby puppies came to play with Indy the other day, but I think her mama loved their visit the most,” Rory captioned an adorable snapshot he shared to Facebook.

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Mother-Daughter Bonding

Joey spent as much time as she can with her baby girl Indiana, and Rory captured some particularly precious moments between the mother-daughter duo.

“… loving watching them loving each other,” he captioned a sweet shot on January 5, of Joey reading a picture book to their young daughter.

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A Passionate Pair

The loving couple first competed as country duo Joey + Rory on the CMT reality show, Can You Duet, in 2008. Rory proudly complimented his wife’s singing voice while on the show.

“Joey’s a singer. She’s got a gift,” he said of his wife. “She opens her mouth and the world moves — at least, mine does.”

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Never Too Far Away

Even when Joey was moved to hospice care, Rory made sure that she and Indiana had plenty of time together.

“We’ll have a play area on the carpet nearby — close enough for her to watch Indy play, and for Indy to turn and make sure her mama can see her,” Rory wrote on his blog. “Joey is at peace with where she is and where she’s going. So am I. An answer to prayer.”

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Living With Faith

In November, shortly after Joey announced that she would be halting all treatments, Rory wrote a heartfelt post commending his wife on her unwavering spirit.

“Joey’s hope never fades,” he wrote. “No amount of pain or medicine can touch it. It runs too deep. It’s connected to her faith in God. And as she will tell you, God can do anything.”

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Silver Linings

Joey expressed a wide range of emotions upon learning that her cancer had returned, but in a November 2015 interview with The Tennessean, she explained that she was trusting in God’s will.

“I was just greatly disappointed. I really thought we had it,” she told the paper. “I thought, ‘I’m going to be that exception. I’m going to be that statistic that stands out.’ … More than anything, I felt like I failed at something. … But God decided for me that my job of singing for people down here is my legacy, and he needs me singing up there. That’s how I look at it.”

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A Great Pairing

In 2010, Joey told the Country Standard Time that she and Rory have been inseparable since they first met, and love every minute of their time together.

“Our perfect date night is making a campfire and cooking steaks over the fire and having a glass of wine and decompressing,” she told the publication. “But we don’t want to be separate for one minute. After eight years of marriage, I think that says something.”

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The Best Medicine

Even when times got tough, Joey and Rory’s daughter Indiana knew just how to make her mom smile, Rory said in an update to his blog on January 14.

“I don’t know where Indy gets her personality from,” he mused. “Joey says it’s from me. I’m not sure I believe her. But no matter … one thing is for sure, our little one has one of the most expressive little faces I’ve ever seen.”

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Stillness in Their Hearts

Joey had several heart-to-hearts with the Big Man upstairs throughout the course of her illness, and in early January, Rory recalled a poignant moment when the country singer told him about one such talk.

“Yesterday with tears in her eyes and mine, Joey held my hand and told me that she has been having serious talks with Jesus,” Rory wrote. “She said she told him that if He’s ready to take her … she’s ready to come home.”

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Country Strong

Good family friend Blake Shelton weighed in on the couple’s tough times in November 2015, calling their strength “inspirational.”

“The courage that they as a family have displayed … it’s inspirational,” he told Entertainment Tonight. “It’s sad, but it’s special at the same time. … To see what they’re going through as a family and what’s happening with Joey, what can you say?”

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Musical Magic

In January 2016, Rory recalled a song the pair wrote together in 2012, titled “When I’m Gone,” sung from the perspective of a dying person to her loved ones.

“Our ‘make-believe’ song and video seems to be coming true,” he wrote. “Some call it ‘life imitating art.’ I don’t. I call it God. He knew I would need her to tell me goodbye … not just once, but a thousand times. And I’d need to know that no matter how much time passes, that she loves me still.”

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Strength and Beauty

Joey has faced her final days with grace and dignity because, as her husband Rory noted, ”like dancing, she wants to do this right, or not do it at all,” he shared with fans. “To share the good, the bad, and the beautiful. And so we will."