An inaugural 5K run and walk that paid tribute to Dolly Parton was energetic, over the top and unique.
Just like Dolly.
The 9to5K Run & Walk in the Music Circle area of downtown Nashville brought an estimated 1,600 runners and several hundred more supporters early the morning of Sept. 5.
Big blonde wigs, glitter, butterfly tops, tutus, and pink and purple colors permeated the scene in a community celebration of the life of the iconic entertainer and philanthropist, who died Aug. 25 at age 80.
“I’m going to start crying,” Joni Lillig, 64, wearing a blonde wig and glitter, said about why she came from Columbia to participate. “Just to share sentiments because Dolly made our life brighter and more joyful.”
The Parton-theme was organized by Run Nash,
but was planned and created more than a year ago before Parton’s death “because it felt like such a natural fit to create a 5K around Dolly’s iconic ‘Nine to Five’ (movie)," said Malain McCormick, owner and operator of Run Nash.
The run benefited the Imagination Library of Middle Tennessee and raised approximately $10,000 estimated to turn into around 5,400 books that will be distributed.
In 1995, Parton launched the Imagination Library, which provides free books to children from birth to age 5.
“I love ‘Nine to Five’ the musical and it’s a movie I can quote start to finish, click by click,” said Ben Martin, 31, wearing a pink hat and tutu. “So when I found out 9-to-5 the run was happening I had to be here and sport my pink."
The run and walk included a sign reading "I will always ❤️ you!" that invited people to write notes in Parton's memory; there was a long line.
There was also a line of people to take photos of an office desk setup replicating the “Nine to Five” film set.
“This is just a tribute to her and what she does, and it’s not just for what she does in music, but also the community,” said the overall 5K winner, Scott Jones. “Things she has done for the community typifies what it is all about and that is community events.”
There was also a Dolly Dash Kids Run and a fitting Stiletto Dash that had a group, including several men, running a roughly 30-yard race in high heels with a filled coffee cup.
“I think she would love to see people out celebrating her life and story while they are doing what they love to do, which is running or walking,” McCormick said.
This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Nashville's 9to5K run celebrates Dolly, Parton-style
