The Minnie Pearl Cancer Foundation is celebrating 25 years of service and Minnie Pearl’s 100th birthday and part of that celebration is the ‘Minnie Moments’ campaign. The campaign features stories from clients, survivors and caregivers who have used MPCF’s services as well as memories from celebrities and fans of Minnie Pearl.

Marty Stuart recently recorded his Minnie Moment. He recalled being invited to join the Grand Ole Opry, but before he could accept, he had to make sure Roy Acuff and Minnie Pearl welcomed him into the family. Minnie’s illness kept her in bed a lot and so Marty went to her with 100 white roses to ask for her blessing.

“When I walked in the room holding a hundred white roses, you could barely see my face, and I lowered them and I said ‘Hi, I love you,’” Marty remembered. “She said ‘Look at them tight pants!’ She didn’t say anything about the roses. About 30 minutes later I had to run out the room, she was getting my face red.”

By Sarah Wyland