Dierks Bentley takes cancer-stricken fan for a drive

Country singer Dierks Bentley helped lift the spirits of a fan battling cancer by giving her a ride in his beloved vintage car.

The Home hitmaker played chauffeur for longtime fan Ann Soyars in his 1967 Camaro on Tuesday (30Sep14).

The drive was a welcome reprieve from her stay at Saint Thomas Hospital in Nashville, Tennessee, where she has been receiving treatment for cancer.

Bentley posted a photo of himself at the wheel with Soyars by his side on Instagram.com, along with the caption, "taking my pal Ann Soyars for one last ride in the '67 Camaro. She's hanging tough. Enjoying good friends and music."

Soyars' support for Bentley goes back to the beginning of his career when he would play small gigs at local Nashville venues, including the Station Inn, where she was a talent booker.

She tells Nashville newspaper the Tennessean, "Dierks Bentley was a kid who would sit in. I heard him one night, found out he had an independent CD, got it and everything on it was great. We wound up being friends. I'd go to his shows, listen and sell his CDs, and I'd tell people, 'You better hang onto this, he's gonna be big someday.'"