Dolly Parton will always be loved for her philanthropic heart, which in 2007 led her to close a 32-date international tour at a minor league baseball stadium in East Tennessee to raise money for a new hospital in her hometown.
The country music icon died Aug. 25 at age 80, but stories like these continue to echo through the Smoky Mountains and across the globe.
Tennessee Smokies stadium Smokies Park, located in Sevier County where Parton was born, welcomed 8,000 fans May 20, 2007, for a 19-song set that included timeless hits like "Jolene" and "9 to 5."
After her 2006-07 "An Evening with Dolly Parton" tour took the singer-songwriter across North America and Europe, this relatively intimate performance raised $500,000 for a $100 million hospital
project in Sevierville. Tickets for the concert ranged from $33 to $150.
"I ain't worth it, but the folks in Sevier County are," Parton said, according to a 2007 News Sentinel report.
Leconte Medical Center opened in 2010 and was boosted by additional support from Parton, with her Dollywood theme park and Stampede dinner theater show each putting $250,000 toward the project.
Parton's connection to the Smokies baseball team, which has since returned to Knoxville, didn't end with the fundraiser. Six years later, the Smokies hosted a Dolly Parton-themed night for a game against the Montgomery Biscuits, filling the stadium with her music once again. The Smokies walked away with the win, scoring a season-high 11 runs.
Trevor McGee covers the Knoxville Smokies and One Knox SC for Knox News. Email: trevor.mcgee@knoxnews.com; X: @TrevorMcGee12
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This article originally appeared on Knoxville News Sentinel: Remember when Dolly played Smokies stadium? It funded a hometown hospital
