Following the mass devastation left behind by Hurricane Helene , Tennesseans are leaning into the volunteer spirit which earned the state its famed nickname.
Sevierville, Tennessee, native, Dolly Parton , announced a partnership with Walmart to assist with relief efforts, donating $1 million to the Mountain Ways Foundation, a nonprofit dedicated to providing immediate assistance to Hurricane Helene flood victims.
“I just want you to know that I am totally with you because I am part of you. I love you,” Parton told a crowd of community members at the Walmart Supercenter in Newport, Tennessee. “I look around and I think, these are my mountains, these are my valleys, these are my rivers flowing like a stream.”
“These are my people. These mountain-colored rainbows, these are my people, and this is my home,” she added.
As previously reported by the Tennessean, Parton’s multiple East Tennessee businesses — Dollywood Parks & Resorts, Dolly Parton’s Stampede, Pirates Voyage Dinner & Show and the Dollywood Foundation — are combining efforts and have pledged to match her donation to Mountain Ways with a $1 million contribution of their own.