Dolly Parton Asks Young Fan With Down Syndrome To Duet Some Of Her Greatest Country Hits Together

Jul 28, 2023 by apost team

Dolly Parton's music transcends generations, and her evergreen sound resonates with a large fandom of classic and new-age music lovers. Besides her undeniable musical prowess, Parton knows how to reach out to her fans in the most delightful ways.

In 2015, the country music legend had a sweet encounter with a special needs fan, which proved to be a defining moment for the latter. In several clips showing the pair's cute meet-up at the Dollywood theme park, Parton and her young fan, Gage Blackwell, reveled in their love for country music and belted some classic sounds together.

With over six decades in the entertainment world, Parton stands for many things, including expertise, impeccable songwriting, award-winning hits, humanitarianism and kindness. 

Having experienced an impoverished background, Parton rose through the ranks in the music industry to become one of the most revered singers. However, she has never lost sight of the sad realities of life. Parton uses her resources and platform to bless and reach out to millions of fans. The star has been known for philanthropic efforts, including her $1 million donation for COVID-19 research. 

The "Jolene" singer's penchant for giving back goes as far back as the 1980s when she established her Dollywood foundation. The aim and work included awarding scholarships to high school students. In 1995, the singer established a few children's book gifting programs via the Imagination Library.  

Parton took her philanthropic efforts a notch higher when she founded the My People Fund, geared towards donating $1000 to families that lost their homes to the Great Smoky Mountain Wildfires in 2016. The money was disbursed monthly to the families, generating over $9 million for over 900 families.  

When the music star's niece underwent a successful surgical procedure for leukemia at the Vanderbilt University Medical Center, she showed support by donating to the institution. Parton is quite invested in giving and has made charitable efforts for the American Red Cross, HIV/AIDS charities and animal rights initiatives. The star told People about her interest in giving: 

"I'm kind of addicted to the feeling of giving. Knowing that I'm doing something good for someone else."

Besides giving, Parton also loves to stress the importance of kindness. Back in 2021, when the musical sage celebrated her 75th birthday, she sent out a profound message channeling humanity. She wrote on Twitter:

"This year, my birthday wish is a call for kindness. We can't just hope for a brighter day; we have to work for a brighter day. Love too often gets buried in a world of hurt and fear. So today, January 19th, let's get to unearthing love."

The 11-time Grammy winner made headlines when she exemplified her message of kindness with Gage, a preteen fan with Down syndrome. The youngster's mom, Lynnae Blackwell, opened up on how they could set a meeting with the superstar. She explained to Today that someone at her son's school saw a clip of him on his Facebook page, where he talked about his wish to meet Parton. 

The person encouraged and convinced Lynnae to reach out to Parton's team. Lynnae bought the idea, and after reaching out to Parton's business associate, Ted Miller, she noted that emails were exchanged for a few days. She provided documents proving Gage's condition, and a 10-minute meet-and-greet with Parton went ahead.     

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An exhilarated Gage took to his Facebook page, documenting his sweet encounter with the music maverick. One of the clips opened with Parton walking into one of the restaurants at her Dollywood theme park. Gage sat in one of the chairs close to the entrance as he flashed a smile upon seeing her.  

The little gathering took a hilarious turn when Parton clapped her hands, asking, "Is that Kenny Rogers?" Gage introduced himself with a flash card of his name, which Parton tried to pronounce as she complimented him. The singer told Gage he looked like Kenny Roger before breaking into "Islands in the Stream," a hit duet she sang with fellow singer Kenny Rogers. 

Gage joined Parton and sang together at the encouragement of someone behind the camera. The duo proceeded to sing more of her popular country sounds, including "Jolene," "Coat of Many Colors," "9 to 5" and "I Dreamed of a Hillbilly Heaven." 

Parton engaged her young fan in light-hearted chats between each song. She discussed her friendship with stars like Tammy Wynette, Loretta Lynn and George Jones. The A-lister also signed autographs. Speaking about the encounter, Gage's overjoyed mom shared:

"There are truly no words to explain how much it meant to Gage, myself and my family for him to get to meet Dolly in person. Gage loves country music and for him to get to sit with and sing with someone he idolizes like Dolly was just heartwarming."

She said about Parton:

"Dolly made him feel like the most important person in the room. She was so amazing to just embrace him the way she did. He will never forget her kindness and, as his mother, I will always be grateful for the love she showed to my wonderful son."

Lynnae relayed that Parton's kindness will remain indelible to her son.    

Isn't watching the moment Gage Blackwell met the world-famous Dolly Parton uplifting? Which of your musical idols would you love to meet? Let us know, and be sure to pass this on to others.