Marie Osmond has broken her silence over the death of her brother Wayne.
The legendary singer, 65, took to Instagram on Wednesday to mourn her elder sibling one week after he passed away at the age of 73 from a massive stroke.
In her emotional message, Marie wrote, “Wayne’s death has left another giant hole in my heart.”
“I’ve taken a break from social media for the past 9 months and will continue to do so as I have felt a need to unplug and spend time with family,” she began in the caption of an undated photo of her and Wayne.
Like her brothers Donny, 67, and Merrill, 71, Marie was able to see Wayne shortly before he died.
“I’m so grateful that just a few weeks ago, I was able to take a long drive to spend time with my brother Wayne. I really felt the Spirit compel me to go see him, and I’m so thankful I listened to what I was feeling.”
She continued, “I will cherish those hours I spent with him for the rest of my life.”
“I didn’t know that just a few days after my visit, he would have a massive stroke.”
Marie shared that she hasn’t spoken about Wayne’s death prior to her post because, “The truth is, it’s just too hard to put into words.”
Nevertheless, she said, “I will try my best to honor one of the most loving men I have ever known.”
“Wayne’s death has left another giant hole in my heart.”
“There’s no question that Wayne had a long and successful career as an entertainer, musician, and songwriter,” she wrote. “But what stands out to me as his sister were the joy-filled, humorous times I spent laughing with him and our deep intellectual conversations that left me edified in one way or another.”
Marie added, “He was always my safe place to go when I needed advice.”
Praising her brother’s virtues, the “Paper Roses” singer remembered Wayne as a person who “loved deeply, and he showered this love upon his beautiful wife, Kathy, whom he loved with all his heart, and his beautiful children and grandchildren.”
“It’s all he ever talked about!” she exclaimed of Wayne’s affection for his family.
Turning to her brother’s Mormon faith, which they both were raised with, Marie said she “admired him, too, for his deep love and unwavering devotion to God our Father and His Son, our Savior, Jesus Christ.”
“Throughout his life, Wayne was an honorable member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints,” the TV icon continued.
“It was his eternal compass, and he was a great light to others as he testified of God’s great plan for us in this life. If you can, listen to one of his favorite albums that my brothers recorded called ‘The Plan.’”
The “Donny and Marie” star shared that if she “could say anything to him” today it would be, “Wayne, I could not cherish the gift God gave me more than to be loved by you in this life! You are a true, loving brother, and I will miss you so very much.”
“I testify eternally of my great love for you with every fiber of my heart and soul!” she added, along with the hashtag “#TillWeMeetAgain.”
Marie concluded her post, “I know many of you understand these feelings from losing your precious loved ones. My deepest prayers are with you.”
Marie’s memorial follows her brother Donny Osmond’s tribute to Wayne that shared in a Jan. 2 Instagram post.
“Wayne brought so much light, laughter, and love to everyone who knew him, especially me,” the “Puppy Love” singer captioned a photo of Wayne. “He was the ultimate optimist and was loved by everyone.”
He continued, “I’m sure I speak on behalf of every one of us siblings when I state that we were fortunate to have Wayne as a brother.”
Wayne Osmond died on Jan. 1, as the Osmond family revealed in a statement to Utah ABC news affiliate KTVX before confirming the news on Facebook.
In addition to Marie, Donny and Merrill, Wayne’s siblings include Virl, 79; Tom, 77; Alan, 75; Jay, 69; Marie, 65, and Jimmy, 61.
The first of the Osmond siblings to pass away, Wayne was the fourth oldest of the nine Osmond children and the second-oldest of the original Osmond Brothers group, which originally included Alan, Merrill and Jay. The quartet later added Jimmy and Donny to the band.
After being discovered performing at Disneyland in the 1960s, the Osmond Brothers would find success in 1971 with their single “One Bad Apple.” The song hit No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, where it stayed for five weeks.
The brothers split up soon after as they pursued solo careers, with Donny and Marie teaming up and reaching new heights of stardom together.
