A real country diva is Reba McEntire. She became a fan favorite loved by millions from the time she stepped on the stage in the late 1970s. She had two marriages during her lifetime and one son, Shelby.
Reba lost her mother Jacqueline of cancer in 2022. Given the two were quite close and fostered a wonderful mother-daughter bond, this was a major blow. She was really ready to leave and had a great, long, healthy life.
The country star said on social media, “The cancer might think it won the battle but we’re giving God all the credit on choosing the time for her to go home to Him.”
Jacqueline wanted to be a singer herself back then, but because her dream did not come true, she taught her daughter singing instead. She departed knowing how much we all know she loved—how much she is loved. Though we will all miss her, Reba remarked, we have so many amazing memories. Regretfully, Reba had loss and grief before this as well. On March 16, thirty-two years ago, seven members of her band, including with her manager, perished in a tragic aircraft disaster.
That day in 1991, the band was in San Diego for a concert; they were traveling to Fort Wayne, Ind., to stage their next one on the tour. Reba and her then-husband chose to spend the night in San Diego even though they were scheduled to fly with another jet. Ten miles or less after it took off, the band’s jet smashed.
Though the sad tragedy occurred more than thirty years ago, Reba never misses a chance to honor the late members of her band. Reba shared the sorrow with Oprah in an interview back in 2012. “The tip of the wing of the airplane hit a rock on the side of Otay Mountain, and it killed everyone on the plane,” she claimed. Narvel (Reba’s manager) visited our pilot when we were informed and informed us what had transpired.
And Narvel returned to the hotel room where I was—two or three o’clock in the morning—and informed me one of the planes had crashed. I remarked, ‘Are they good?,’ asked “I don’t think so,” he answered. But you’re not sure? I said. “I don’t think so,” he answered. Reba could not hold tears flowing down her cheeks as she remembered the terrible day.
