Country Singer Rory Feek Denies Raising 10-Year-Old Daughter With Down Syndrome In A ‘Cult’ After Daughters Go Public With Concerns

Country singer Rory Feek is now speaking out amid his older daughters’ concerns for their 10-year-old sister, Indiana.

Feek, 59, has been raising his youngest daughter in an agrarian Christian Community with links to Homestead Heritage. The community has faced many scandals after member Bill DeLong confessed to sexually assaulting a six-year-old girl.  

In telling his story, Rory shared an extensive blog post on August 31 titled, “Love, Dad.” In the post, Feek writes, “Indiana has never been more loved or better cared for than she is right now.”

Feek’s older daughters, Heidi and Hopie, say that Indiana, who has Down Syndrome, needs special care. 

On August 29, Heidi posted about a Taste of Country article where she and her sister Hopie were asked about the conditions of growing up in their father’s care. Mentioning Indiana in her Instagram post, she alleged that “Recently Indy was left in the care of a group with a well-documented history of physical and sexual abuse of children. Indiana, who has special needs, deserves to be in a safe and stable environment where her well-being is the top priority.”

On July 14, Feek married Rebecca in Greycliff, Montana, according to a prior blog post. The wedding took place eight years after he lost his wife, Joey, after battling cervical cancer.

Rory wrote, “For the first time in her life, she has a mother,” after Joey’s death came when Indiana was just two.

While on their honeymoon, allegations arose saying that Indiana was left with members of an alleged “cult.”

Feek addressed these claims, writing that Indiana “stayed with two families, both of who have little ones that Indy is very close to.” 

He also went on to defend Homestead Heritage by noting that “what you’re going to find is a bunch of people who have learned how to love each other in the community truly. To die to themselves and to put God first, and the fruit of it is everywhere you look… Exactly the opposite of what some of these silly, salacious online reports are saying.”

While acknowledging his older daughters’ differing viewpoints, Rory said that Heidi and Hopie did not respect the boundaries he had set for Indiana, which led to more tension within the family. 

Rory wrote, “The situation had escalated to them taping the conversations they were having with her and leading her on so they could find ammunition to use against me, and it had become clear that Heidi wasn’t looking out for Indiana’s best interest—she was looking for revenge and a way to hurt me, no matter the cost…”

Due to the allegations about Indiana’s safety, Heidi and Hopie have created a GoFundMe page to help with fees as they pursue legal action against their father and to assist Indiana.