Ricky Skaggs' first wife was Ralph Stanley's cousin, Brenda Stanley. They met when Skaggs, only 17 years old, was a member of Stanley's band, the Clinch Mountain Boys, and they married in the early 1970's.
The couple had two children together, Mandy and Andrew. Skaggs was married to Brenda while he took a short break from making music. Frustrated by the long hours and low pay playing with Ralph Stanley, Skaggs settled the family in Virginia, taking a job working in a boiler room for the Virginia Power Company in Washington, D.C. In 1981, Skaggs married Sharon White, lead singer of the country band The Whites. They have a daughter, Molly, and a son, Lucas
