Dolly Parton Shared How She Wanted to Be Remembered Before Death; E! News, August 25, 2026

 GABRIELLE CHUNG, E! News ; Dolly Parton Shared How She Wanted to Be Remembered Before Death

Before Dolly Parton died at 80 on Aug. 25, she said she wanted to be remembered not for her country music career, but for her work as "the book lady" through her Imagination Library charity program.

"Dolly Parton's 9 to 5 wasn't all about music.

In fact, the country singer—who died on Aug. 25 at age 80—always wanted to be remembered for her work through Dolly Parton's Imagination Library, a charitable program that provides free books to kids from birth to age 5.

“My dad couldn't read or write and that was kind of crippling to him," she shared in her 2020 documentary The Library That Dolly Built. "Of all the things I’ve done in my life—and it’s been a lot because I’ve been around a long time—this is one of the most precious things and the proudest I’ve been of any program I’ve ever been involved in, working with these kids."

And that's how she became "the book lady" amongst her youngest fans.

"Daddy got to live long enough to hear the kids call me 'the book lady,'" Dolly, who launched the book-gifting project in 1995 in honor of her father Robert Lee Parton, told Today in 2019. "He was proud of as me being a star, and that meant so much to him."

So, which title did she prefer most: country music queen or book lady?

"The book lady," she said without hesitation. "I have loved doing this for the kids. There's nothing more important than our little kids, to make an impression on them when they're young and to teach them the right things early on."

MacKenzie Scott Expands Giving Spree to Tribal Colleges; The New York Times, November 20, 2025

 Alan Blinder, The New York Times ; MacKenzie Scott Expands Giving Spree to Tribal Colleges

[Kip Currier: Imagine if more billionaires shared their good fortune with more people in need throughout the U.S. and the world, like MacKenzie Scott is.]

[Excerpt]

"The philanthropist MacKenzie Scott is funneling tens of millions of dollars into tribal higher education, months after the Trump administration sought to cut one of the system’s most essential funding sources.

The donations could help shield some tribal schools — which measure their reserve funds and endowments at best in the low millions, not billions — and their students from budget bickering in Washington. Ms. Scott has not made public comments about her recent gifts, but according to the recipients, the funds will support at least one tribal school and a nonprofit group that focuses on scholarships for Native American students.

Little Priest Tribal College, in Winnebago, Neb., announced on Thursday that Ms. Scott had given it $5 million. The school learned of the gift as it was planning a capital campaign that, officials hoped, might raise $10 million over a decade.

“There’s a sense of happiness, a sense of hope,” Manoj Patil, the college’s president, said in an interview. He said of Ms. Scott, “She’s given us hope, hope for success, hope to dream big.”"

ALA Receives Major Gift to Fund Scholarships; American Libraries, December 9, 2024

 American Libraries; ALA Receives Major Gift to Fund Scholarships

"James W. Lewis, of Washington, D.C., fondly remembers trips to the public library in his hometown of New Bern, North Carolina. As a preschooler, Lewis’s parents would take him to the library, housed in the historic John Wright Stanly House.

From those early memories to his more recent involvement serving on the Board of Trustees of the District of Columbia Public Library (DCPL), Lewis has maintained a special connection to libraries.

Lewis has made the largest individual bequest to the American Library Association in the Association’s history. The approximately $25 million bequest is truly transformational and will fund scholarships for aspiring librarians, ensuring future generations of highly educated and committed librarians prepared to meet the informational needs of their communities, according to Leslie Burger, ALA interim executive director.

Lewis’s gift will fund library school scholarships for students with demonstrated financial needs. These scholarships will benefit legions of young people who would otherwise be unable to pursue professional librarianship."