This past February, music legend Toby Keith passed away from stomach cancer at the age of 62. This August, his son, Stelen Covel, announced the birth of his baby girl, who would have been the star's fourth grandchild - Millie Brooks Covel. Covel and his wife, Haley, welcomed their new daughter on Friday evening and chose to share the news via Instagram with fans.
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"Millie is here. We love you so much, little girl," an up close photo of their daughter was captioned. Milly is Stelen and Haley's first child together, which they happily announced back in February, shortly after Keith's passing. Covel also took to Instagram to share a tribute to his dad, in which he called him "the strongest man [he has] ever known."
Covel said of Keith, "Your impact is forever stamped on the world and on millions of people, yet not one person knew you the way I did. You were my biggest champion and the guiding light in my darkest times." He ended the post with a farewell to his inspiration, "It's not goodbye forever, it's just goodbye for now."
Haley also shared a tribute to Keith on her Instagram, saying, "I'll never have the right words to say. Toby was larger than life at home and on stage. It's a complete honor to be his daughter-in-law," she wrote. "He took me in as his own, and I'll be forever grateful for that. He touched the lives of so many, and I'm blessed to be one of those." She also shared a photo of Keith walking her down the aisle.
Toby Keith Was Not Only a Great Performer, but a Great Father as Well
Stelen is the youngest of Toby Keith's three children with his wife, Tricia Lucus. Lucus and Keith married in 1984, and adopted Stelen's older sister, Shelley Covel, later that year. They had Krystal Keith not too long after, and then eventually Stelen in 1997. In an interview talking about her father's role in their lives growing up, Krystal, 39, commented on how present Toby always was.
"I think it speaks volumes that the way I kind of remember childhood is I don't really remember him being gone. When he was home, he was so present that I don't remember the spans of him being gone," she said. "He's a lot more normal than people expect him to be. He's exactly what you get of him in interviews and things like that."
We're sure that Stelan will take inspiration from his father, whom he referred to as "A fighter. A titan of [his] industry," as well as his guiding star and hero. Toby Keith will always be a legend, but for his children, he passes down a legacy that is more valuable than any accomplishment he could have made—the legacy of parenthood.
Photo By: Getty / Christopher Polk
