Angie Henson was dressed in all pink with platform tennis shoes, rhinestone pants and a sparkly shirt in honor of Dolly Parton.
“She loved to outshine and outsparkle everybody,” she said. “That's why I wear what I wear a lot because I like to bring happiness to people that see me sparkle.”
Henson was among hundreds of people who visited Dollywood the morning after the country icon’s death on Tuesday. She, like many others, came to help remember the icon. Henson’s friend, Kat Tilson agreed.
“She's the reason why I take care of people the way I do, and I try to follow her image,“ she said.
Pictures of Parton with her iconic “I Will Always Love You” song title were displayed across the park, including in front of the replica of her childhood home, which was a one bedroom log cabin. Russ Matthewson and his wife sat on a bench across from the cabin, reflecting on her life.
“I've always said that if something happened to Dolly, the flags would be flown at half staff because she has done so much for this state,” he said. “You have never once heard anything bad about her, not one thing.”
Born into poverty, Parton rose to fame at an early age through her songs. NPR writes that her “wit and magnetism” helped launch her solo career in the 1970s, leading to songs like “9 to 5”.
Her inspiration has reached across the globe, including at the University of Tennessee, which once offered a class on her life and career.
Her upbringing inspired philanthropic endeavors, ranging from disaster relief to charitable donations to hospitals. Other initiatives included Imagination Library: a program that offers free books to children ages 5 and below. Since its launch in 1995, more than 330 million books have been distributed across the world.
Jeff Kramer, who visited Dollywood with his family, said his daughter receives the books through the program.
”She knows Dolly as the person who sends her a book every single month that she enjoys reading,” Kramer said.
Other initiatives include donations to hospitals like the Monroe Carroll Jr. Hospital at Vanderbilt. That’s where Stacy Kramer works.
“We've seen a lot how that hospital has changed and grown and helped so many children too,” she said.
A tribute to the icon
At 12 p.m. sharp, park officials called for a moment of silence. The tribute was part of a county-wide effort to remember Parton. Just a few miles down the road, visitors paid their respects at her statue in downtown Sevierville.
Meanwhile, visitors and employees gathered on the main street of Dollywood to pay their respects. Heads down, eyes closed. Some wiped away tears. A few moments later, a piano version of “9 to 5” softly played in the background.
Lori Banther sat along a curb, tears welled in her eyes. She wore a “Dolly” hat, and a Dollywood shirt. She said she has been coming to the park since its opening in 1986.
“She made a difference,” she said. “Not just with her money, but with the way she lived her life and the kindness that she showed everybody.”
The show must go on
Adults and children alike rode rides like Blazing Fury, sharing a moment of silence for Dolly at the Robert F. Thomas chapel, and witnessed her life and career at her museum. The smell of cinnamon bread, a Dollywood staple, swirled across the park.
Officials at the park decided to keep Dollywood open the day after her passing to honor her spirit, according to their website.
“I know we all are reflecting today, but we also promised her the show would go on,” said Eugene Naughton, the president of Dollywood Parks and Resorts. “And that we'd be a place where families could come and spend time together, and that's why we're open.”
Families celebrated anniversaries, others traveled across oceans to fulfill a lifelong bucket list item.
Leeya Stier, who is visiting the United States this summer from Israel, heard the news of Parton’s passing when she entered Tennessee. She felt it was right to celebrate her life at the park.
“And when we come here, we actually see all the investment that she put into this park. And I know that her goal was to make people happy.”
Others like 16-year-old Kylie Harris celebrated their birthday at Dollywood, with a hope to follow her footsteps.
“She's helped me to be more of an activist for groups of certain people, like the LGBTQ community,” she said.
This story was produced by the Appalachia + Mid-South Newsroom, a collaboration between West Virginia Public Broadcasting, WPLN and WUOT in Tennessee, LPM, WEKU, WKMS and WKU Public Radio in Kentucky, and NPR. Sign up for the weekly Porch Light newsletter here for news from around the region.
