Dolly Parton, a beloved figure from East Tennessee, joined forces with several Sevier County attractions and Walmart to make a substantial donation for flood relief during an event held on Friday.
The event took place at the Walmart in Newport, Tennessee, where Parton announced a $1 million donation to the Mountain Ways Foundation, a nonprofit organization focused on providing immediate aid to victims of Hurricane Helene. Additionally, Parton’s East Tennessee enterprises, including Dollywood Parks & Resorts, Dolly Parton’s Stampede, Pirates Voyage Dinner & Show, and the Dollywood Foundation, matched her donation, raising the total contribution to Mountain Ways to $2 million.
Parton expressed her deep connection to the region, saying, “We wish that we were all together for another reason, but we all have seen the devastation. I mean, who knew in our little part of the country here where I was born, raised just right down the road, that we would have this kind of devastation? And I look around and I think ‘These are my mountains, these are my valleys.’ These are my people and this is my home. And I just want all of you to know that, like Eugene was saying, remember when we had the fires, everybody pitched in, tried to do everything that they could, and so I really think that this is a time for me to step up again. For all of us to step up and do what we can.”
Eugene Naughton, president of the Dollywood Company, spoke before Parton, recalling the resilience demonstrated by the community during the 2016 Sevier County fires.
“Just one week ago, thousands of lives again were impacted across East Tennessee, Western North Carolina, and points beyond, and while in Sevier County we were spared the major damage, the lessons we learned from the Smoky Mountain wildfire, those of resilience, those of determination, and those of love for others, led us to reach out to our neighbors to determine how we could help following the recent flooding,” Naughton said.
At the event, Walmart U.S. President and CEO John Furner announced that Walmart, along with Sam’s Club and the Walmart Foundation, would donate a total of $10 million to hurricane relief efforts across the affected states, with a portion allocated to the East Tennessee Foundation.
Furner, who moved to Franklin, Tennessee, in 1979, shared his commitment to the region, saying, “We’ll be here. Not until the media leaves, but until we recover, and that’s what’s going to happen here, we’re going to recover.”
Dollywood, in partnership with Coca-Cola, had already donated a semi-truck full of water for distribution in Cocke County. Additionally, Dollywood contributed 60,000 reusable masks, 30,000 disposable protective garments, and 2.5 million disposable masks for cleanup efforts across East Tennessee.
In collaboration with donation centers established by the city of Pigeon Forge, Dollywood will serve as a donation drop-off location for those wishing to contribute cleanup items, including buckets with lids, tarps, shovels, rakes, trash bags, work gloves, masks, cleaning wipes, diapers, baby formula and food, can openers, first aid supplies, personal hygiene items, kitty litter, new socks and underwear, clean towels and blankets, laundry detergent, pet food, and hand sanitizer. Donations can be dropped off at the park’s front gate.
Concluding the event, Parton addressed those who have lost everything, saying, “I know it’s easy for us to say, ‘Oh, things are going to get better’ when things are still really bad. All we can say is that ‘We are with you, we love you. We hope that things get better real soon and we’re going to do our part to try to make that possible. We love you and we appreciate you. And we thank you.’ And I think that with God’s help and all help with all these good people. We’ll make it. We’ll come. We’ll be better than ever one of these days.”
Parton is renowned for her philanthropic efforts throughout the region, particularly in times of disaster. In 2021, she donated a portion of ticket sales from Dollywood and her dinner shows to assist those affected by flooding in Middle Tennessee. She also played a significant role in the Dollywood Foundation’s My People Fund, which provided $1,000 to Sevier County families whose homes were uninhabitable or destroyed by the 2016 Sevier County wildfires. The fund raised over $9 million during a star-studded telethon, allowing Parton to surprise the families with a final $5,000 check.