Only one day after Celine Dion‘s mother, Thérèse Tanguay Dion, passed away at the age of 92, the “My Heart Will Go On” singer spoke out about her mother’s death during her concert in Miami, Florida.
“I’m pretty sure that you heard the news about my mom passing away early this morning,” Dion told the crowd, as TMZ noted. “But I’m doing okay. My mom was 92. She was ill for quite a while. And we knew she wouldn’t be with us long. Two days ago, we got a call from the nurses who were taking care of her so well, saying that her time was coming soon. Very soon. So last night, I joined my brothers and sisters in Montreal and I spent the evening at her bedside.”
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“We told stories. We sang songs. We hugged each other. And we said our goodbyes,” she described. “We are pretty sure that mom waited for us to be all together before [she passed].”
Dion concluded by announcing a tribute to her mother. “Maman, we love you so much… We dedicate tonight’s show to you and I’ll sing to you with all my heart. Love, Céline,’ she told her fans at the concert.
It was previously reported that Dion’s mother, Thérèse, had passed away after months of declining health, per TMZ. Thérèse, known as “Maman Dion” in Canada, had 14 children, with her late husband Adhemar, who died in 2003. She was reportedly surrounded by family and friends at the time of her passing, as Celine even noted herself. The tabloid outlet reported that Dion’s eldest sister, Claudette Dion, spoke out about Thérèse’s health last year, saying that the matriarch had been dealing with memory loss and vision and hearing impairment.
Following the news of her mother’s death, Dion took to Instagram to share a tribute to her. In her post, which featured a photo of the singer’s large family, she also revealed that her concert in Miami would go on as planned.
Thérèse’s death came exactly four years after the passing of Dion’s brother, Daniel Dion. Additionally, it came only days after the fourth anniversary of the passing of René Angélil, Celine’s late husband. On Instagram, she acknowledged the anniversary by posting a lovely tribute to Angélil.
“There is not a day that goes by without me thinking about your beautiful smile,” she wrote alongside a photo of him. “We miss you, thank you for watching over us my love. I love you. Céline xx.”
Photo Credit: Edward Berthelot/Getty Images
