Appalachia native Dolly Parton said Friday she will donate $1 million for Hurricane Helene relief efforts. Parton said the $1 million will go to the Mountain Ways Foundation, a nonprofit organization dedicated to providing immediate assistance to Hurricane Helene flood victims. "These are special people here; they're my people," Parton said during an event announcing the donation at a Walmart in Newport, Tennessee.
"I feel like all people are my people, but everyone here grew up in the mountains just like I did, so of course I have a close connection to them. I can't stand to see anyone hurting, so I wanted to do what I could to help after these terrible floods." The country music icon was born in Locust Ridge, Tennessee to a poor family living deep in rural Appalachia — and Parton has often written about her childhood and the region in her songs, including hits such as "Smoky Mountain Memories" and "My Tennessee Mountain Home.
" She was joined by Walmart U.S. CEO John Furner, who said the company, including Sam's Club and the Walmart Foundation, would donate a total of $10 million to hurricane relief efforts across the affected states.
Parton's associated businesses, including Dollywood Parks & Resorts and The Dollywood Foundation, also announced they would match Parton's donation with another $1 million to the Mountain Ways Foundation. At least 225 people have been confirmed dead after Helene swept through the Southeast , and officials say they expect the death toll to ris.