Dolly Parton is not just changing lives; she's creating a lasting impact. After the East Tennessee Children's Hospital announced it would be renamed in honor of the "Jolene" hitmaker, its president and CEO, Matt Schaefer, revealed how her substantial donation would touch countless lives. "What I can tell you is that she has made a generational and transformational commitment to Children's and its mission," Schaefer told Chief Healthcare Executive in an interview published on March 30. "This commitment is far beyond our wildest expectations, incredibly generous, and will serve as a lifeline for this mission now and for years to come."
Schaefer added, "We're excited and humbled by her willingness to do so." While the hospital exec didn't disclose the exact monetary value of Parton's donation, he noted how the hospital's name change to Dolly Parton's Children's Hospital would "allow them to tell a broader story about the depth and breadth of services here, to imagine how we can continue to expand those services, and it accelerates how we should think about what our responsibility is to the patients and families that trust us today and will trust us tomorrow."
"What Dolly's partnership is allowing us to do," he explained, "is to amplify and accelerate some of those initiatives in a way that we could not have done otherwise without that type of support. It's about backing and awareness across the region for providers, clinicians, patients, families, and referring providers."
Weeks earlier, Parton—who recently detailed her journey with her own "health issues"—shared insight into why her partnership with the hospital is so meaningful to her. "I've always believed that every child deserves a fair chance to grow up healthy, hopeful, and surrounded with love," the 80-year-old said in a Feb. 26 Instagram video. "That belief is what brought me together with the incredible folks at East Tennessee Children's Hospital."
"For nearly 90 years, their teams have provided compassionate and talented care. They see children not just as patients but as precious lives, each with a story and a future," she continued. Later adding, "Together, we're committed to strengthening our relationship where world-class care and a caring heart go hand in hand for children across East Tennessee and beyond."
