CEDAR RAPIDS — A decade ago, before a sold-out crowd in the U.S. Cellular Center in Cedar Rapids, a rhinestone-encrusted, fan-adoring Dolly Parton graced Eastern Iowa with 2½ hours of her greatest hits and newest ballads — from “9 to 5” and “Jolene” to “Smoky Mountain Memories” and “Here You Come Again.”
She was as generous with her gratitude of the fans as she was with the sparkle on her outfits — leaving Eastern Iowans with not just a night to remember but a legend in the iconic Parton, who died Tuesday at age 80.
“Rest in peace, Aunt Dolly,” her nephew Bryan Seaver said in a video message Tuesday announcing her death. “Aunt, Granny, Gigi. May God bless Dolly Parton, and may God bless you all. She will always love you.”…