NEWPORT, Tenn. — Dolly Parton and Walmart's CEO announced millions of dollars in donations that will go to help flood victims from Helene.
Dolly announced she donated $1 million from her personal bank account, and the Dollywood Foundation donated another $1 million.
"It's going to take a lot of money, and even more time. There's a lot to do," Dolly said.
Dolly spoke about Cocke County and Newport. The community neighbors her childhood home in Sevier County.
"I am part of you, I love you," she said. "When I was growing up, Newport was like the place we would go to the closest dentist, and of course, we would come up here to the Bush canning factory to get those dented cans at a discount. This just makes me feel like I'm right at home."
"These are special people here; they’re my people,” Dolly said. “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. I hope we can all be a little bit of light in the world for our friends, our neighbors—even strangers—during this dark time they are experiencing."
Walmart CEO John Furner said the company will be donating $10 million in donations and grants, saying one grant will go to the East Tennessee Foundation. Walmarts will also be taking donations during a giving campaign at the register that will matched for the American Red Cross.
“One of the things we love most about Dolly as a partner is her incredible heart and care for her community,” said Furner. “She reminds me of our associates who are always the first to jump to action when our communities need us. This time is no different, and we will continue to provide support until they have recovered.”
Furner said $2.5 million has been matched in the giving campaign so far.
"We're with you, we love you, we hope that things get better really soon, and we're going to try to make that recovery possible," Dolly said.
Furner said several of the company's associates in Newport lost everything in the flooding.
"I can't think of anything I've seen that was like this," Furner said. "ur associates always step up when there's a need, and that's exactly what happened here and what's continuing to happen here."
Walmart said more than 100 of its parking lots are being used to help Hurricane Helen victims -- saying they are providing showers and a place for people to charge phones.
Furner said Walmart workers impacted by Helene will have lost pay made up and the company was making sure they had a safe place to stay. The Walmart Foundation also has an Associates in Critical Needs Trust that will help employees affected by the disaster through financial hardships.
Dollywood said it is also working with Coca-Cola to donate a semi-truck full of water for Cocke County. The company also donated 60,000 reusable masks, 30,000 disposable protective garments and 2.5 million disposable masks to help with cleanup efforts in East Tennessee.
Dollywood is also helping take donations at a drop-off location at the park. It said items needed right now include:
- Buckets with lids, tarps, shovels, and rakes
- Trash bags, work gloves, masks
- Diapers, cleaning wipes, baby formula
- Food, can openers, first aid supplies, personal hygiene items
- Kitty litter, pet food
- New socks and underwear, clean towels and blankets
- Laundry detergent and hand sanitizer
“Dollywood’s share of the donation from our ‘Love Shares’ program helps Mountain Ways get started in providing immediate assistance where needed. As local leaders are able to better assess their communities in the coming weeks, we will determine additional ways we can assist in the recovery effort,” Dollywood said.