<p id=”par-1_40″>While Dolly Parton’s music is a <a href=”https://www.cheatsheet.com/news/how-dolly-parton-will-keep-legacy-alive-after-death.html/”>major part of her legacy</a>, people will also remember her for her philanthropic work. Parton gave millions back to <a href=”https://www.cheatsheet.com/news/dolly-parton-day-singers-hometown-make-family-uncomfortable.html/”>her local community</a> and the world at large. She spoke about the importance of philanthropy.</p>
<h2 class=”wp-block-heading” id=”h-dolly-parton-gave-to-many-philanthropic-causes”>Dolly Parton gave to many philanthropic causes</h2>
<p id=”par-2_38″>One of Parton’s biggest philanthropic focuses was <a href=”https://www.cheatsheet.com/news/dolly-parton-calls-book-symbol-her-imagination-library.html/”>her Imagination Library</a>. The program mails free books to children under the age of five to boost childhood literacy. She founded it in honor of her father, who could not read. </p>
<p id=”par-3_56″>“If you can read, even if you can’t afford education, you can go on and learn about anything you want to know. There’s a book on everything,” she told <a href=”https://www.npr.org/sections/ed/2018/03/01/589912466/dolly-parton-gives-the-gift-of-literacy-a-library-of-100-million-books” target=”_blank” rel=”noreferrer noopener”>NPR</a>. “So I just think that it’s important for kids to be encouraged to read, to dream and to plan for a better life and better future.”</p>
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<p id=”par-4_17″>The program mails books to children in the United States, Australia, Canada, the United Kingdom, and Ireland.</p>
<p id=”par-5_61″>Parton has also poured millions into healthcare-related causes. She gave $1 million to fund research in the coronavirus vaccine. She also helped raise money to open a new hospital in Sevier County. This is now home to the Dolly Parton Center for Women’s Services. She also teamed up with the East Tennessee Children’s Hospital, which became the <a href=”https://www.cheatsheet.com/news/dolly-parton-calls-fans-help-support-namesake-childrens-hospital.html/”>Dolly Parton Children’s Hospital</a>.</p>
<p id=”par-6_59″>Parton gave even more back to her home state after devastating wildfires swept through eastern Tennessee in 2016. She launched the My People fund, which gave $1,000-per-month stipends to all affected families. The stipends lasted for six months, with the families receiving $5,000 in the final month. The fund also raised scholarship money for students who lost their homes.</p>
<p id=”par-7_16″>In 2024, she donated $2 million to disaster relief efforts in eastern Tennessee following Hurricane Helene.</p>
<p id=”par-8_28″>She also gave back to the natural world. Her theme park, Dollywood, has a sanctuary to protect bald eagles from extinction and a waystation for migrating monarch butterflies.</p>
<p id=”par-9_49″>Parton regularly donated to a number of smaller charitable organizations. She also had a long-documented history of supporting HIV/AIDS awareness, including producing the 1989 documentary <em>Common Threads: Stories from the Quilt</em>. In addition, she gave her song “You Gotta Be My Baby” to an album raising money for research.</p>
<h2 class=”wp-block-heading” id=”h-dolly-parton-received-awards-for-her-philanthropy”>Dolly Parton received awards for her philanthropy</h2>
<p id=”par-10_20″>In 2022, Parton received the prestigious Carnegie Medal of Philanthropy. In her acceptance speech, she shared her approach to charity.</p>
<p id=”par-11_37″>“I just give from my heart,” she said, adding, “I never know what I’m going to do or why I’m gonna do it. I just see a need and if I can fill it, then I will.”</p>
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<p id=”par-12_24″>She also <a href=”https://www.cheatsheet.com/news/what-you-need-know-about-100m-prize-dolly-parton-awarded-jeff-bezos.html/”>received the $100 million</a> Bezos Courage and Civility Award from Jeff Bezos. She could donate the money to causes of her choice.</p>
<p id=”par-13_57″>“When people are in a position to help, you should help,” she said when she accepted it. “And I know that I’ve always said, ‘I try to put my money where my heart is.’ And I think you do the same thing. I will do my best to do good things with this money. Thank you, Jeff.”</p>
<h2 class=”wp-block-heading” id=”h-she-shared-the-origins-of-her-charitable-works”>She shared the origins of her charitable works</h2>
<p id=”par-14_27″>Parton said she started giving back once she started to appear on <em>The Porter Wagoner Show</em>. She began <a href=”https://www.cheatsheet.com/news/dolly-parton-revealed-charity-work-started-porter-wagoner-show-one-hide-covers.html/”>giving scholarships to students</a> at her hometown high school.</p>
<p id=”par-15_37″>“I started it before I even had the Dollywood [amusement] park,” she told <a target=”_blank” href=”https://www.vogue.com/article/dolly-parton-carnegie-medal-of-philanthropy-interview” rel=”noreferrer noopener”>Vogue</a>. “I started giving out scholarships at the Sevier County High School, back when I had my first job with <em>The Porter Wagoner Show</em>.”</p>
<p id=”par-16_33″>In the 1990s, she told middle schoolers in Sevier County that she would give them and a partner $500 if they graduated high school. This reduced the dropout rate from 35% to 6%.</p>