Dolly Parton donates over $1 million to Hurricane Helene relief efforts

Dolly Parton has announced that she will donate over $1 million to support those affected by Hurricane Helene.

“This is my home,” Parton said Friday at a Walmart in Newport, Tennessee. “This is the time for me to stand up once again, for all of us to stand up and do what we can.”

The singer-songwriter shared the news at an event to fund relief efforts for those affected by Hurricane Helene. Parton said she is trying to do her part to combat the significant destruction and displacement caused by the hurricane.

A number of Parton's companies, including Dollywood Parks & Resorts, The Dollywood Foundation, Dolly Parton's Stampede and Pirates Voyage, will partner with Walmart to provide flood relief to the Appalachian region.

Parton has given $1 million to the Mountain Ways Foundation, a charity focused on providing immediate relief to flood victims of Hurricane Helene. Additionally, Parton's East Tennessee-based companies are partnering with the Dollywood Foundation to double their contribution to Mountain Ways with an additional $1 million donation.

“Who would have thought that in our little part of the country here – where I was born and raised right down the street – we would see such devastation?” Parton said. “When I look around I think, 'These are my mountains, these are my valleys, these are my rivers… these are my people and this is my home.'”

The country music icon continued to express how connected she feels to the victims of Hurricane Helene, citing many of her own relatives who live in the area.

“It was devastating, not just because it was my family, but because all of these people feel like my people,” Parton said. “We all feel connected and are connected in some way. It just devastated me to know that we had to suffer like that.”