Dolly Parton died Aug. 25, according to a statement from her family. She was 80. The Tennessee native had built one of the longest careers in American music and had become, in her later decades, as well known for her charity work as for her songs.
President Trump announced the death on Truth Social. "Very sad to report that Dolly Parton, one of the greatest Country singers, and far beyond, EVER, has just passed away," Trump said. "This is a true loss for millions of people. There has never been anyone like her, and never will." He ordered U.S. flags lowered for one week and added, "Rest in Peace, Dolly. The World loves you."
Speaker Mike Johnson, Republican of Louisiana, called Parton "a true national treasure." Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer said, "We love you, Dolly," describing the Imagination Library founder as "a force for good."
The tributes crossed party lines with particular intensity inside Tennessee's own delegation. Republican Sen. Marsha Blackburn said she and her husband were "absolutely heartbroken and saddened to hear of the passing of our friend." Blackburn wrote that Parton's "life and career are forever woven into Tennessee's music, culture, and history" and that her "extraordinary talent, generosity, and love for the Volunteer State touched hearts around the world."
Blackburn's Democratic opponent in the Tennessee governor's race, Jerri Green, also posted a tribute, calling Parton one of "Tennessee's finest" and noting that she "always used her platform to lift others up." Green said Parton was "an unapologetic advocate for the most marginalized, including our LGBTQ+ neighbors" and wrote that "the world is brighter and better simply because she existed."
Republican Sen. Bill Hagerty said Tennessee had "lost one of its greatest legends — a woman who never lost sight of her faith, her roots, or the Volunteer Spirit." He called Parton "a true Tennessee treasure."
Rep. Diana Harshbarger, Republican of Tennessee's 1st Congressional District, which includes Sevier County where Parton grew up, released a statement. "Dolly Parton was one of ours," Harshbarger said. "She grew up in the hills of Sevier County, right here in Tennessee's First District, and no matter how big her star got, she never stopped being one of us." Harshbarger cited Dollywood, Parton's theme park, as something that "put East Tennessee on the map for the whole world to see."
Harshbarger also praised Parton's Imagination Library — a program that mails free books to children from birth until they start school — as having "put books in the hands of children who needed them most, including so many right here at home." Rep. Tim Burchett, also a Republican from Tennessee, echoed that point, saying Parton's "philanthropic work helped provide greater access to education for countless young Tennesseans" and calling her "the very best of the American Dream."
Governor Bill Lee, Republican, also paid tribute, writing that "rare is the one who climbs to the pinnacle of fame, then scoffs at its allure only to retain the genuine humility that defines them" — describing Parton as exactly that kind of figure.
Parton's philanthropic record extended beyond the Imagination Library. In 2020, she donated $1 million toward the research that helped Moderna develop its COVID-19 vaccine, a gift that drew bipartisan praise and was credited with helping encourage vaccine uptake.
The breadth of the response — from a sitting president ordering flags to half-staff, to candidates on opposite sides of a gubernatorial race issuing nearly identical statements of grief, to the Speaker and Minority Leader speaking in unison — reflected the degree to which Parton occupied nonpartisan ground in American public life. Her Imagination Library has distributed books in all 50 states as well as internationally. Dollywood, her Pigeon Forge theme park, has been one of East Tennessee's primary economic anchors for four decades.
