The country star encourages people to "keep the faith" during the coronavirus pandemic. Now she's putting a dollar amount to it—$1 million to be exact.
Along with being a beloved cultural icon, Dolly Parton is also a humanitarian and philanthropist. So it comes as no surprise the singer is doing her part in fighting the coronavirus with a generous donation.
In a Twitter post on Wednesday, the singer announced she would donate $1 million to Vanderbilt University Medical Center to go towards researching the mysterious new virus. Parton mentioned "some exciting advancements" the hospital was making in their research of the virus and encourages anyone who can to make a donation of their own.
"My longtime friend Dr. Naji Abumrad, who’s been involved in research at Vanderbilt for many years, informed me that they were making some exciting advancements towards research of the coronavirus for a cure."
I am making a donation of $1 million to Vanderbilt towards that research and to encourage people that can afford it to make donations.
— Dolly Parton (@DollyParton) April 1, 2020
The United States has become the epicenter of the coronavirus pandemic, claiming over 200,000 of the world's confirmed cases with 4,513 deaths as of April 2. There is no cure, but scientists are racing to develop a vaccine to protect against the contagious disease.
Parton is among many famous faces donating money and resources towards fighting the pandemic. The country music community launched a special platform called "Gratitunes" to support the VUMC staff with music playlists featuring Amy Grant, Jewel, and Brad Paisley. Parton herself is no stranger to good deeds during times of crisis—citizens who lost their homes during the 2016 Great Smoky Mountains wildfires received $8 millionfrom the singer's Dollywood Foundation My People Fund.
Recently Parton launched a digital storytime series called "Goodnight with Dolly" to live stream on Facebook every Thursday. Along with her literacy nonprofit Imagination Library, she's donated to charities like Barbara Davis Center for Childhood Diabetes and Cancer Research UK.
If there's anything this crisis has shown, it's the power in people coming together—and the kindness it brings.
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