You'll Never Believe What Dolly Parton Did

By Maria W. • Jun 21, 2024

Dolly Parton accepting Liseberg Applause Award 2010 portrait

Who doesn't love Dolly Parton? The world first knew Dolly for her songs, but this national treasure makes a difference far beyond country music. Never forgetting her humble beginnings, Dolly gives back in big ways in education, medical research, natural disaster relief, and a lot more!

1. The Dollywood Foundation

Dolly began writing her way into Americans' hearts in 1966, when her songs first hit the charts. As her fame skyrocketed, Dolly, who had grown up "dirt poor" as one of 12 children, grew her passion for philanthropy. Troubled by high school dropout rates in her home county of Sevier County, Tennessee, Dolly started The Dollywood Foundation in 1988 to offer scholarships to local high school seniors, and the foundation now encompasses many other programs that promote literacy and education.

2. Scholarships to Hiwassee College

In 1989, shortly after establishing the Dollywood Foundation, Dolly awarded $500 scholarships to every high school senior in Sevier County who applied to Hiwassee College, a two-year college in Monroe County, Tennessee. Dolly awarded the scholarships regardless of students' GPAs or college entrance exam scores. 14 Ways Dolly Parton Gives Back-1

3. The Buddy Program

The Dollywood Foundation's research pinpointed seventh and eighth grades as critical years for children to decide to finish high school. Dolly responded to these findings by establishing The Buddy Program in 1991. This program paired seventh and eighth graders in Sevier County into buddy systems, in which students signed contracts vowing to make sure their buddies graduated from high school. If they did, Dolly promised $500 to each student upon their graduation. The Buddy Program dropped the county's dropout rate from over 30% to just 6%!

4. Dolly Parton's Imagination Library

Possibly Dolly's best-known program, the Imagination Library gives free books to children from birth to age 5 in the U.S. and four other countries. Dolly started this initiative to honor her father, who never learned to read or write. Her vision for spreading childhood literacy resulted in more than 3 million children receiving almost 240 million books by 2024. As Dolly says, "You can never get enough books into the hands of children."

5. $30,000 Scholarship to Evey Johns

In December 2016, the Imagination Library reached the amazing goal of sending books to one million children every month. To mark this milestone, Dolly awarded a $30,000 scholarship to 2-year-old Evey Johns of Conway, Arkansas. Dolly made this exciting announcement in November of that year during a concert in Pigeon Forge, Tennessee, benefiting the Imagination Library.

6. Dollywood Education Coverage

February 2022 brought fantastic news to Dollywood Parks and Resorts employees. That's when the Dollywood Co. announced full coverage of tuition, fees, and books for all employees. This includes people who work seasonally, part-time, and full-time. The Dollywood Co. invests in its employees' education through a partnership with Herschend Enterprises. And new employees don't have to wait. They qualify for this life-changing program on their first day at work.

7. Benefit Concert for New Hospital

In 2007, Dolly performed a benefit concert for a new hospital in her home county of Sevier in Tennessee. Combined with donations from Dollywood and Dolly's Stampede dinner theatre, Dolly raised $1 million to help open LeConte Medical Center in 2010. The hospital serves the Sevierville area with a spectrum of services, including emergency care, cancer treatment, and the Dolly Parton Birthing Unit and women's care center.

8. $1 Million Donation to Children's Hospital

Ten years after raising $1 million for the LeConte Medical Center, Dolly donated $1 million to another hospital: Monroe Carell Jr. Children's Hospital at Vanderbilt University Medical Center in Nashville. Dolly's niece Hannah Dennison underwent treatment for leukemia as a child at this hospital, and Dennison is now a healthy adult. Dolly also unveiled the Hannah Dennison Butterfly Garden at the hospital in honor of her niece. 14 Ways Dolly Parton Gives Back-2

9. COVID-19 Vaccine Research

Early in the COVID-19 pandemic, Dolly donated $1 million to coronavirus research at Vanderbilt. This donation helped fund Moderna's COVID-19 vaccine during the critical early stages of the vaccine's development. Once the vaccine was ready for the public, Dolly received a dose herself while singing and making a video to promote vaccine awareness.

10. Pediatric Infectious Disease Donation

Vanderbilt University Medical Center received another $1 million from Dolly in 2022. This time, Dolly's donation helped fund pediatric infectious disease research. The singer's generosity will help Vanderbilt researchers continue studying how diseases develop as well as how to diagnose, treat, and prevent them.

11. My People Fund

The Great Smoky Mountains wildfires raged through parts of Tennessee in 2016, and Dolly again stepped up to help. She established the My People Fund for Sevier County residents who lost their homes. The fund provided $1,000 a month for six months to renters or homeowners whose primary residences had been destroyed. 14 Ways Dolly Parton Gives Back-3

12. Tennessee Wildfires Telethon

To provide even more help to wildfire victims, Dolly organized a benefit concert raising more than $13 million for Gatlinburg and Pigeon Forge, some of the most devastated areas. The concert included some of Dolly's fellow musicians, such as Reba McEntire, Cyndi Lauper, and Kenny Rogers.

13. Middle Tennessee Flood Relief

When disaster once again struck Tennessee in 2021 in the form of catastrophic flooding, Dolly and her businesses raised $700,000 for flood victims through United Way of Humphreys County. 14 Ways Dolly Parton Gives Back-4

14. Eagle Mountain Sanctuary

Part of Dollywood, Eagle Mountain Sanctuary provides a safe environment for bald eagles that are permanently disabled and unable to survive in the wild. American Eagle Foundation staff members feed and care for the eagles, who are given annual physicals. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service awarded Dolly its Partnership Award in 2003 for her efforts to save bald eagles. 14 Ways Dolly Parton Gives Back-5

Dolly Parton is a not only a country music icon; she is a living legend with a heart as big as her legacy. Her acts of kindness and philanthropy influence positive change in the U.S. and across the world.