Who Is Dolly Parton?

My VIP for this week is Dolly Parton. She was born in a one-room cabin in January 1946 in Tennessee, the fourth of twelve children. The family later moved to a two-room cabin and a farm. Dolly’s father was illiterate and worked first as a sharecropper and then in construction. Her mother cared for the large family and shared musical talents with her children. Dolly described her family as being “dirt poor.”

Dolly wrote her first song at age six and began to perform in public at age ten. She became a singer-songwriter, actress, businesswoman, and philanthropist. She was known as the “Queen of Country.” She wrote more than 3,000 songs and sold more than 100 million records. Her music endures with hit songs like Jolene, Coat of Many Colors, 9 to 5, and I Will Always Love You. She starred in films, such as 9 to 5 and Steel Magnolias. In her six-decade career, she earned 11 Grammy’s and multiple Hall of Fame inductions.

Dolly was also a philanthropist. She founded Dollywood. She launched the Imagination Library and provided millions of free books to children worldwide. She received multiple humanitarian honors before her death last week.

Dolly was married but never had children of her own. Therefore, she treated her nieces and nephews as her own and loved children everywhere.

Dolly was a successful businesswoman, and she used her great wealth to help people who were less fortunate.

I chose Dolly as my VIP for this week for two reasons: (1) She is all over the news this week.

(2) Her life shows that a person can start life with almost nothing and still become successful in American by working hard and developing talents.