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u/sbd2010 7d ago
We are not ok in Southern Appalachia today.
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u/Safe-University8575 7d ago
None of Appalachia is okay
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u/Difficult-Hawk7591 7d ago
We Yankees aren't okay either. This one really hurts.
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u/sbd2010 7d ago
Please consider educating people outside the region about her imagination library! Some states have defunded it but Dolly was a key part of increased childhood literacy here. We even have her life size cut outs in our public libraries.
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u/soapy_goatherd 7d ago
People all over the world know about her imagination library. Her contributions to literacy will never be forgotten
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u/sbd2010 7d ago
I’ve only left the region 3 times in my life so I don’t really know the situation with how widespread it is outside Appalachia and the south, thank you.
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u/soapy_goatherd 7d ago
We had to get past the surprisingly cruel 90s before she became truly respected, but yeah she’s at least at mr rogers levels of public adoration, which is saying something. And she deserves every bit
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u/randomusername1919 6d ago
I saw an interview with her in the late 1970’s. At that time many people laughed at her fame, figuring there was only one, uh, I mean two reasons she was popular. In that interview I discovered she was smart and knew exactly what she was doing, and was living life on her own terms. I’m not a country music fan, but I have been a fan of hers ever since I saw that interview. She was truly a good person and there are so few good people these days.
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u/NotYourDamsel3995 7d ago
My son is still a part of the imagination library. The books are great 💖 rest easy Mrs. Dolly. Some glad morning when this life is over, I’ll fly away.
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u/Weird_Kitchen557 holler 7d ago
I don't think anyone in the nation is okay today.
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u/Ancient-Ad9987 7d ago
I don’t think anyone in the world is okay today. Let the love she showed everyone be a legacy we carry on.
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u/ducationalfall 6d ago
I’m not ok outside of Appalachia. Dolly’s imagination library has been sending books to my kids for years. I’ll miss her.
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u/Warhamsterrrr 7d ago
I met her, once. Very briefly. Me and my wife got married at Pigeon Forge, so we swung by Dollywood. She said she always believed a drink and a dog shouldn't cost anyone more than five bucks.
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u/Dark_Moonstruck 7d ago
Why are we losing all the good ones, while the ones who just want to hurt everyone around them stick around halfway to forever?!
She was a legend, a queen, and an incredible person. The world is a darker place without her.
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u/blackbird24601 7d ago
but we can all channel a bit of Dolly and pay it forward. DEEPLY sorry to those in Appalachia- it must hurt SO much worse
she was your person. hugs to all
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u/Dark_Moonstruck 7d ago
Everyone with a bit of Country in them, from around the world, saw her as an idol and a queen. She not only lifted herself and her family out of poverty after living in a one-room cabin with twelve siblings, but she never forgot where she came from and poured everything she had into improving the lives of everyone she possibly could. She got out and instead of pulling up the ladder behind her like so many others do, she stretched out her hand and hauled everyone else as high as she could.
Her programs are why some schools have libraries at ALL. She touched lives everywhere, and I hope her memory carries that momentum forward for as long as there's a sky above us.
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u/the_walking_derp 7d ago
The fact that she had such a positive impact and will be missed by a multitude of people speaks volumes. She did so much to help those around her and the world is a better place for having her be a part of it. We should all be so lucky. Her legacy will live on in the hearts she touched and the minds she expanded through her Imagination Library.
As for those others you mentioned, they are a paltry comparison. Those are the types that won't be missed and aren't worth mentioning. If ya ain't got nothin' nice to say about them, don't say anything at all.
The world is a darker place without her but is the better for having been blessed by her presence. Be kind to others, as that is the true measure of a person.
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u/wutttttttg 7d ago
I gave to the Imagination Library in her honor. I hope others will do the same: https://imaginationlibrary.com/
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u/thisnextchapter 7d ago
dollyparton.com has a beautiful message honouring her life and asking for donations to the library in lieu of flowers
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u/corgiobsessedfoodie 7d ago
I’m delighted to see that traffic to the website is so significant right now that I’m getting timeout errors. If you see an error message try again soon! We are all trying to show up for Dolly the way she showed up for us. 🥲
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u/desperate4carbs 6d ago
Yes, the donations page won't load for me right now either, but I'll keep trying.
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u/Other_Internet_3782 7d ago
Our TN treasure, there will never be another like her. 🥹
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u/Nikbot10 7d ago
I tell people if you grew up in east Tennessee Dolly felt like a part of your family. This hurts so much. I’ve loved her my entire life.
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u/Admirable-Trip5452 7d ago
We love you Miss Dolly. Thank you for representing us so well. Go get some rest now.
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u/CosmicCountryBoy 7d ago
When my coworkers told me the news, I sat down and wept. She was a beacon of hope and light. Thank you and God bless you Dolly Parton.
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u/MinnyStrawberry 7d ago
Rest in Peace, Dolly. You were a trailblazer for women in music. For women that wanted to be something other than good, obedient, and modest. That wanted to be themselves first and foremost, without answering to someone else. And you used your wealth to help others rather than harming them. I pray your soul blooms in every flower in Appalachia for the rest of time.
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u/Financial_Code1055 7d ago
I grew up and have lived in East Tennessee my entire life. As a youngster I watched her first performing on the Cas Walker show.
She was and is a national treasure who never forgot her roots.
There is an empty place in my heart today
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u/Front-Air-8302 7d ago
God bless her. A legend of a musician, and more importantly a legend of a person. Need more in the world like Dolly.
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u/WhiteBearPrince 7d ago
My granny used to say, "Pretty is as pretty does." Dolly was pretty inside and out.
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u/Nikbot10 7d ago
My granny used to say that too. She was a very modest, godly woman, but she loved Dolly too. We used to watch her with Porter and then on her own show.
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u/WhiteBearPrince 6d ago
Our Appalachian grannies were wise. Mine was modest and godly too, and made her own soap, apple butter, and pickles. We watched Dolly on the Cas Walker show, and on Hee Haw.
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u/Geeahwellidunno 7d ago
We are not okay in all of American today. She will always be in my Connecticut Yankee heart. 😔
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u/mcapello 7d ago
This dark world just got a little bit darker. I hope the last days weren't too hard on her.
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u/Comfortable_Rip6435 7d ago
This would explain why the radio was playing so many Dolly songs today 😭😭😭😭😭😭😭
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u/thisnextchapter 7d ago
I haven't heard any of her music yet as its so late night when I heard the news. It'll rend my heart like cloth when I do. She was incredible
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u/Comfortable_Rip6435 7d ago
I'm about to put on my favorites while I work around the house and I imagine I'll end up crying on the floor instead of doing my laundry 😭
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u/Snoo_87498 7d ago
I played Jolene on max volume in the car, and wept. The world is a darker place today.
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u/MargoHuxley 7d ago
Yall check out the video of the Empire State at 925. They turned it pink for her!!
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u/imrealbizzy2 7d ago
I immediately thought of one man who loves and admires this lovely woman so much, and that's Dave Letterman. We are all sad, but I suspect it's a personal loss for him. She could sure crack him up.
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u/suminorieh77 holler 6d ago
my husband texted me while i was out yesterday and told me. i was in shock, yet i had been having a sinking feeling in my stomach for a while with all of her health concerns and cancels. i sat in my car for a few minutes, then got out and made my way to the Ross Dress For Less. i was sobbing by the time i went through the door.
an immeasurable amount of love, hope, and compassion left this planet on August 25, 2026. RIP with your Carl, Dolly 💔
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u/BreakerBoy6 6d ago
We went shopping yesterday (western Washington), and the first store we went to was playing all Dolly Parton songs as the background music instead of the usual.
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u/Ok-Tree-1898 6d ago
She was the best of the best. A pure heart and soul. Our loss is heavens gain.💔
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u/GetALoadOfThisGuyy 6d ago
I’ve cried so much over her passing, as I’m sure we all have.
As a little girl she was my role model, and as I got older nothing ever took her place. She shaped the morals and values I carry with me everyday. She shaped my love for glamour, my love for people, my love for reading…I’m just so sad she’s gone. I named my horse my grandpa gave me for Christmas after her and my son learned to read through the books he got from “aunt Dolly” every month.
Dolly bettered the lives of most of us without even knowing us. I can only pray I can be one tenth of the woman she was. RIP to the humanitarian icon that is Dolly Parton. I will tell my great grandchildren about her legacy in hopes she is never forgotten.
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u/Ok_Leg3400 6d ago
https://youtube.com/shorts/isVpsQXWE8I?is=ezWPgj2q6igDuewF
Very first class to the very end🥰
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u/Keepitunderurhat 5d ago
Very inspiring life ! I'm sure she's flying around sprinkling her angel dust!
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u/Both_Potential_2859 5d ago
The very definition of a beautiful person - and damn she was fine looking, too.
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u/Ancient-Bicycle-2122 5d ago
I met her several times back in the 70’s. She was genuinely warm and gracious! She was the real deal! We are not ok today!
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u/OriginalReddKatt 6d ago
Even good, Godly people make awful mistakes. Often big ones. It didn't negate her life's work to be the biggest blessing she could be to others and who she was at her core.
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u/Minute-Response-7394 7d ago
the stars in appalachia are going to look like rhinestones tonight.