Learn About Rory Feek’s Story & His Family
Rory Feek’s oldest daughters, Heidi and Hopie Feek, announced last week that they are “pursuing legal action” against him. Heidi and Hopie say they took this step because they are concerned about the safety of their little sister, Indiana.
Rory, a country singer and songwriter, welcomed Heidi and Hopie early in his life. Later on, he met and married Joey Martin, and they formed the duo Joey + Rory.
Joey + Rory competed on the first season of the CMT show Can You Duet? in 2008 and came in third place. Their fame grew after competing on the show, and they became known for songs such as “Cheater Cheater,” “That’s Important to Me,” and “If I Needed You.”
Joey + Rory welcomed their daughter, Indiana “Indy” Boone Feek, on February 17, 2014. Sadly, just a few months later, Joey was diagnosed with cervical cancer. She passed away on March 4, 2016, at the age of 40.
Fans followed Joey + Rory’s story on his blog, This Life I Live. He continued the blog after Joey’s death, sharing updates on his and Indy’s lives.
It was through his blog that Rory introduced his new wife, Rebecca, to his followers. The couple married on July 14 in Greycliff, Montana.
Rory Feek’s Adult Daughters Are “Pursuing Legal Action” Against Him Out Of Concern For Their Younger Sister, Indiana
After the wedding, Heidi Feek expressed concerns on social media about Indy’s safety and well-being. She claimed that Indy had been left with a family she and Hopie did not know while Rory went on his honeymoon.
Heidi believes this family is connected to a group called Homestead Heritage, which is a Christian, farming-based community with origins in Waco, Texas. The community also has a branch in Greycliff, Montana, where Rory and Rebecca married.
The Homestead Heritage group has a reported history of abuse allegations, which is at the heart of Heidi and Hopie’s concern for Indy, who has Down Syndrome.
After Joey’s death, Rory Feek’s oldest daughters helped him care for Indy, and she often stayed the night at their homes. Heidi alleges those visits stopped happening, and Rory cut off communication between them and their younger sister.
“…he stopped letting her come and spend the night in Alabama, which had been a staple of her entire life, and now we can’t even talk to her on the phone.”
Thus, Heidi and Hopie decided to start “pursuing legal action” against Rory in an effort to protect Indy.
Rory Feek Responds To His Daughters’ Accusations
Rory Feek responded to Heidi and Hopie’s “hurtful” accusations in a blog post titled love, dad. He said he would have preferred to keep his and his daughters’ conflict private but felt the need to respond publicly after their public statements.
“Although Heidi has been posting hurtful stuff online for months, actually for two years now, I have never responded,” he said. “Not once. Not because I don’t care or because what she and they’ve been saying is true. And not because it doesn’t hurt me, because it does. The things she’s shared have broken my heart. They still are. But the reason I don’t respond is simple… I love my kids.”
Rory then addressed some of his daughters’ claims, saying Indy is allowed to see them and speak to them. But she can’t stay the night anymore because they did not follow his rules for Indy.
He said he withdrew his daughters’ right to see Indy after they turned him into Child Protective Services. He claims they were “taping the conversations they were having with [Indy] and leading her on so they could find ammunition to use against [him].”
Rory also addressed Heidi and Hopie’s concerns about Homestead Heritage, saying:
“What saddens me about the accusations against them the most is that no one reached out to me to ask about them or anyone else. They just looked online, found people saying bad things that frustrated ex-members and strangers have said through the years, and ran with it as truth.”
Heidi & Hopie Feek Respond To Their Dad’s Blog Post
After Rory published his blog post, Heidi and Hopie responded in a series of posts on social media.
“Hi dad, this is Heidi and Hopie. As sad as it is to say, we’re just happy to hear from you,” read the first slide in a post shared on Heidi’s Instagram page.
The next slide read:
“You’re right of course, online isn’t the place to settle this. We don’t know if you’re aware, but we’ve been trying to reach you for months now offline, but you haven’t been responding.”
Then, Heidi shared a screenshot of a text conversation with her dad. It shows her texting him over several days in July, asking to speak to Indy. Rory did not respond to the texts.
View this post on Instagram
Heidi and Hopie’s letter continued:
“Our hope is that this letter will find you, so you can know where our hearts are. Love is action, not words. We forgive you for your unkind words. You called us cowardly in your blog post for not facing you. We forgive you.”
Another slide read:
“But love is action. We begged you to work this out privately and you consistently refused to love us.”
Then, the girls shared an audio recording of them “begging” Rory to go to family therapy with them and him turning down the offer.
In a second post, Heidi wrote about feeling “heartbroken” that her father claimed Indy has never received better care. “My heart aches for Joey. You went on to say, ‘For the first time in her life, she has a mother’ How can you say that?” Heidi said.
Heidi also discussed her concerns about Homestead Heritage and some of its members in further detail.
She and Hopie delivered a final message, saying, “Love is action. And we love our little sister Indiana more than anything in the world. So we are taking action. Love, your daughters.”
See Heidi and Hopie’s full post below.