Ashley Judd Eulogizes Mom Naomi at Nashville Memorial Celebration

Ashley Judd joined her sister Wynonna Judd and their stepfather Larry Strickland on Sunday to pay tribute to her mother, Naomi Judd, following her death in late April at the age of 76.Taking the stage at Ryman Auditorium in Nashville, Tennessee on Sunday, the actress began the memorial service, called “Naomi Judd: A River of Time Celebration,” with an emotional eulogy, reflecting on her mother’s life and her decades-long career.

Thanking those in attendance, which included PopCulture.com, for gathering at “the mother church of country music,” which Judd noted “is where mom wanted her public celebration to take place,” the actress began by tearfully noting, “We are here tonight remembering an icon and a legend who left country music better than she found it.” She went on to share that her mother, born Diana Ellen Judd, took “her identity into her own hands” and changed her name to Naomi Judd, the famed country icon’s daughter remembering her mother as “every woman. Perhaps this is why everyone felt they knew her.” Judd went on to recall how her mother went from the child who knew everyone’s birthdays, to a teen mother, and eventually a member of the iconic mother-daughter music duo, The Judds. She also noted all of the difficulties her mother overcame in her life.

“The result is that we are here tonight remembering an icon and legend who left country music better than she found it,” Judd told the audience. “Since the 30th of April we have been remembering the complex and dynamic life of our mother and story. She was every woman. Perhaps, this is why everyone thought they knew her. She was a nurse. She was a single mom who sometimes relied on public assistance, she was traumatized by early childhood abuse, intimate partner violence and rape and she was fired by a boss when she refused to go away with him for a weekend.” 

Judd concluded the eulogy by sharing that her mother “was Mamaw to her grandchildren, Elisha and Grace and to my chosen family and she was totally extraordinary. The five-time GRAMMY Award winner, the multi-platinum artist, the Hall of Famer who was lauded by millions and tonight we remember her in song.” She went on to introduce her sister, who sang “River of Time.”

The Sunday service came just weeks after Judd and her sister confirmed that their mother passed away. In a statement, the sisters confirmed, “We lost our beautiful mother to the disease of mental illness. We are shattered. We are navigating profound grief and know that as we loved her, she was loved by her public.” Judd later revealed that her mother died from a self-inflicted gunshot wound. Naomi was 76.

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