In 2021, Tennessee lawmakers wanted to put a statue of Dolly Parton at the state capitol. Her response is a shining example of her humility.
Now that she's gone, Tennessee, you know what to do.
Fun fact about Dolly Parton: She earned well over a billion dollars in her lifetime but was never a billionaire due to her extensive philanthropy. She consistently gave away massive portions of her wealth throughout her life.
Dolly funded the Imagination Library, sent musical instruments and uniforms to band departments in schools throughout the South, helped fund COVID vaccine research, and donated millions to natural disasters.
She was a constant LGBT supporter, and she believed that black lives mattered. She supported the trans population. She just loved everyone and she made sure we knew it.
She was a Christian. Instead of using her Christianity to judge, she used it as Jesus did, to love her neighbor. She didn’t hoard her money; she used it to help people wherever and whenever she could. That’s why there’s such an outpouring of love.
Be like Dolly.
Dolly once wrote me a letter asking if I’d listen to a song she’d written and consider singing it with her. The truth is, I didn’t even listen before I said yes. When Dolly Parton asks, you say yes.
When God made Dolly, He broke the mold.
This one really hurts. 💔
Global icon and humanitarian, Dolly Parton, known to the world as a beloved singer, songwriter, philanthropist, actress, playwright, and author died peacefully today in Nashville, Tennessee. She was 80 years old.
Dolly is preceded in death by her beloved husband of 59 years Carl Thomas Dean (1942 – 2025), her mother Avie Lee Caroline Owens (1923 – 2003), and father, Robert Lee Parton, Sr. (1921 – 2000).
A rhinestone life that shone bright enough for the world to see, Dolly will forever stand as an inspiration not only through her timeless music and prolific songwriting, but also her wit, warmth, and kindness that made us all feel like family. Dolly Parton’s legacy is one of love, compassion, and resilience. With a seven-decade career, she inspired multiple generations of artists and fans with her music and an unwavering commitment to making the world a better place. Her songs will continue to resonate with people of all ages, and her philanthropic work will have a lasting impact.
At Dolly’s request, a small, private service will be held for immediate family. Dolly’s fans and friends from around the world are encouraged to pay tribute to Dolly on social media by tagging @DollyParton or by leaving a message at https://t.co/cLu9I7M2wC
In lieu of flowers the family asks for donations to be made to Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library at https://t.co/arzrqInqJA
An apt day to remember that Dolly Parton once recorded a cover of Stairway to Heaven - and, in defiance of every moral law in the universe, she absolutely owned it.
In 1988 Dolly Parton pulled every 7th and 8th grader in Sevier County into a room and told them to pick a buddy.
She made them sign a contract.. if BOTH graduate, she hands you both $500. One fails, nobody gets paid.
The county dropout rate went from 35% to 6%.
She handed out the checks herself.
In 1989 she offered $500 to every kid in the county who wanted to go to the local college.
When Gatlinburg burned in 2016, she sent 900 families $1,000 a month for six months.
You've probably heard that part.
Here's the part you haven't:
The fund raised more than expected, so she showed up in May and handed every one of those families another $5,000 on top.
Then she quietly put $3 million into the recovery group that handles the years after the news trucks leave.
She built her county an entire hospital.
She played a benefit concert in 2007, Dollywood and the Stampede matched it, and LeConte Medical Center opened in 2010 with a birthing unit and a women's center in it.
In 2022 she started covering 100% of tuition, books, and fees for Dollywood employees.
Full-time, part-time, AND seasonal.
In 1991 she paid for a bald eagle sanctuary because the birds couldn't be released back into the wild, no press release.
And when Hurricane Helene came through here in Western North Carolina, she wrote a personal check for $1 million and her companies matched it.
She didn't owe North Carolina anything, but she helped us anyway.
She started the Imagination Library because her daddy couldn't read or write. Before he passed, he told her it was the most important thing she ever did.
Rest in Peace, Dolly 🇺🇸
The feeling of losing my Aunt Dolly is beyond what feels right to share. Our most sacred moments were private and they’ll stay there behind the stage, beneath the glamour & between our hearts.
What I KNOW is Dolly would want me to feel it, write a song about it, and then continue on and be strong. I have an angel by my side. I always have. One of our last conversations was about music and metamorphosis. 🦋
I will always love her and want to make her proud. My heart breaks for the world, her family and friends who will miss her deeply. We’re in this loss together and we will see her in all of the most beautiful things. 💖 @dollyparton
Jason Selvig: “What’s Donald Trump’s greatest accomplishment in his first year and a half?” Trump supporter: “Trump’s done a lot of things. Number one, a lot of people don’t realize, he got our country back because we’ve been under the reign of Great Britain the last 125 years, they destroyed the evidence”
JS: “Wait, we’ve been under the reign of Great Britain?”
TS: “That’s why King Charles come here, he thought he was going to manipulate Donald Trump. And Trump went along with him cause that’s who he is. But that’s what the 250 years was really about was we got our country back. You just gon have to research just like I did. It’s true”
Today the courts have forced Andrew Tate to admit that he didn’t even own those cars.
If you ever wondered if the humiliation Tate suffered that day at the hands of @GretaThunberg could be topped… the answer is a resounding yes! 😆
@jk_rowling Personally I like to know almost everything beforehand, it’s why restaurants have menus, if I order a steak and they send a salad is that very not a big deal? How does this person live their life? Just accepting anything they’re presented with 🤷🏽♂️
The accusation that I am antisemitic is appalling and fundamentally dishonest. Criticizing the actions of the Israeli prime minister, a military technology contract, or the executives who supply it is not the same as criticizing Jewish people. This critical and necessary dialogue is then dishonestly framed as being anti-Israel. To be clear, my views come from my own political convictions and should never be interpreted as hostility toward Jewish people, for whom I have deep love and respect. Everything I know about acting, activism, and humanism has been profoundly shaped by the Jewish friends, colleagues, and loved ones who have been integral and family throughout every point of my life.
This merger has real consequences for real people, and for the entire country. Scrutinizing the Ellisons, including Oracle’s business built on data, surveillance technology and government contracts, and the serious threat to editorial freedom and the loss of a livelihood for thousands of families, is fair and necessary. The $111 billion deal would hand one family control over CNN, HBO and Warner Bros., backed in part by foreign money whose influence on editorial decisions has never been fully explained to the public.
Lawmakers on both sides of the aisle have called for serious national security review, and regulators still haven’t given the public a real answer. Until they do, the merger shouldn’t move forward. Now is the time to dive boldly into all these issues, not step back or concede.
Today marked one month since I became Prime Minister.
Cutting tax on electricity bills. Capping bus fares at £2 in England. Making subscriptions easier to cancel. Cracking down on fake discounts. Giving 14-year-olds early access to technical education. Opening 159 new mental health centres. Investing to get all rough sleepers off the street this winter. Supporting farmers affected by the drought. Cutting business rates for pubs, clubs, and music venues. Shutting down 13 more asylum hotels. Giving mayors a share of income tax. Extending the 16-17 Saver Railcard. Bringing buses in the West Midlands under public control. Fast-tracking new homes near train stations. Cleaning up illegal waste dumps. Giving communities and councils more power over what opens on their high street. Opening No10 North. Giving disabled people 24/7 free bus travel. Delivering the biggest transfer of power, funding and responsibility from Westminster in a generation.
It's a start, but I’m not complacent. I know that people need more and I promise that I will do everything I can to make yours and your family’s lives better. We're doing things differently to give people more breathing space and bring back hope.
Here’s to the next month.
.@DeonnaPurrazzo has words for @stephdelander before putting the #ROH Women’s Pure Championship on the line TOMORROW NIGHT at #ROHDBD!
Watch #ROH Duel to the Death Before Dishonor on #HonorClub at https://t.co/l79CE3grm1