On August 25, 2026,
Dolly Parton died at age 80 "after bravely facing a brief battle with cancer."
In just a few days, the world has displayed just how much one woman from a small cabin in the Smoky Mountains could mean to millions of people who never met her.
Sign this petition and ask Congress to name September 25 a federal holiday in honor of Dolly Parton's incredible legacy!Dolly was an extraordinary artist. She spent seven decades writing and performing incredible music. She had 25 number one country hits, more than any other woman in history, and wrote "Jolene" and "I Will Always Love You," timeless songs that have outlived every trend that came and went around them.
She won a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award and earned spots in the Country Music Hall of Fame, the Songwriters Hall of Fame, and the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. She also starred in "9 to 5," the 1980 movie and wrote the hit song of the same name,
giving a voice to workers tired of being overlooked and underpaid.
Off stage, Dolly gave away
so much of what she earned. She came from a life of poverty, born into a family of 12 children living in one-room cabin in East Tennessee. She described her family as "dirt poor" and her father could not even read; but her descriptions of the music that filled their lives and home was inspiring. It is no secret that her family's once dire situation drove her to the humanitarian causes she would later give so much of her time and money to.
Her Imagination Library has mailed more than 330 million free books to children so every child could own books of their own. She gave millions of dollars to families who lost their homes in the 2016 Smoky Mountains wildfires, funded early research for the COVID-19 vaccine, and supported children's hospitals across Tennessee.
She used her fame and success to quietly, steadfastly help countless people she would never meet.A federal holiday would keep her legacy alive, and honor a woman who profoundly changed the world for the better.
September 25 is not a random date. Read it out loud and it sounds like "9 to 5," the song and the movie that made Dolly a hero to working people everywhere.
We cannot risk her story becoming another headline that fades once the news cycle moves on. A federal holiday would give schools, workplaces, and families a yearly reason to teach the next generation about a woman who turned hardship into success, and success into generosity and hope for the people around her.
Sign this petition and tell Congress it's time to make September 25, Dolly Parton Day, a federal holiday!