{"id":444508,"date":"2026-08-26T23:14:27","date_gmt":"2026-08-26T23:14:27","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/444508\/"},"modified":"2026-08-26T23:14:27","modified_gmt":"2026-08-26T23:14:27","slug":"dolly-partons-legacy-and-impact-are-felt-by-many-in-long-beach-press-telegram","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/444508\/","title":{"rendered":"Dolly Parton\u2019s legacy and impact are felt by many in Long Beach \u2013 Press Telegram"},"content":{"rendered":"

Dolly Parton<\/a>, the country music icon, had an incredible and personal impact on countless people across the country and the world \u2013 not only through her music but also through her activism and philanthropy. Patron\u2019s death on Tuesday, Aug. 25, left many in mourning, including residents and local organizations in Long Beach.<\/p>\n

From local artists to the Long Beach Public Library Foundation, many reflected on Parton\u2019s legacy and support of literacy, medical research and marginalized communities.<\/p>\n

Hearing the news of Parton\u2019s death, at 80 years old, came as a shock and a \u201cdevastating blow,\u201d said Long Beach artist David Gilmore.<\/p>\n

\u201cShe\u2019s always been a force for good and such a positive example that I\u2019ve seen my entire life,\u201d Gilmore said on Tuesday. \u201cHad hoped we\u2019d have at least another decade with her.\u201d<\/p>\n

In 2021, Gilmore was hired by Luke Nero, who owned Strut Bar & Club in Costa Mesa at the time, to create a 51-by-19-foot mural of Parton<\/a> on the side of the business. Strut Bar & Club had opened just six months before the COVID-19 pandemic and was temporarily closed for a full year because of government restrictions.<\/p>\n

In honor of Parton\u2019s help funding research for the COVID-19 vaccine, Nero hired the Long Beach artist to paint the mural. Gilmore said he started working on the mural a month before the LGBTQ+ nightclub reopened. Although the business is now permanently closed, the mural still remains in its home in Costa Mesa.<\/p>\n

\u201cNot only is she an icon in the queer community and beyond, but she is truly a model of inclusivity,\u201d Nero said in 2021.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s my hope that our mural will add positivity and a sense of togetherness,\u201d Nero added, \u201cwhile recognizing the contribution of frontline workers.\u201d<\/p>\n

The mural is an iconic and heroic depiction of the country star, Gilmore said in a Tuesday interview.<\/p>\n

\u201cI really unleashed the rainbow,\u201d Gilmore said. \u201cShe has a halo over her head, light rays are shooting out of her hands with those beautiful giant nails, doves are holding scrolls with her name on them, huge blooming flowers are behind her, and butterflies are fluttering about.<\/p>\n

\u201cI am a true admirer of Dolly and appreciate how everyone loves her,\u201d Gilmore added. \u201cShe\u2019s not political, she\u2019s not divisive; she\u2019s all heart, talent, wit, passion and the best of us. Dolly was love and light and a true icon.\u201d<\/p>\n

Parton\u2019s philanthropic work with her Imagination Library, meanwhile, also impacted many lives.<\/p>\n

And the Long Beach Public Library Foundation is set to recognize that contribution in September. The foundation had previously announced that it would present Parton\u2019s Imagination Library with this year\u2019s \u201cLibrary Leadership Award\u201d during its annual gala.<\/p>\n

The award is the foundation\u2019s highest honor, presented annually to an organization or individual whose leadership has made a transformative impact on libraries, literacy and lifelong learning, organizers said. The award recognizes vision, sustained commitment and measurable outcomes that expand access to education and opportunity.<\/p>\n

\u201cFor three decades, Dolly Parton and her Imagination Library have been a national leader in early childhood literacy, providing free, high-quality books to children from birth through age five,\u201d Veronica Garcia D\u00e1valos, executive director and CEO of the Long Beach Public Library Foundation, said in a Tuesday statement. \u201cBy placing books directly into the hands of children and families, the program has fostered a lifelong love of reading, strengthened school readiness, and expanded equitable access to learning for millions of families across the United States and internationally.\u201d<\/p>\n

Inspired by her father\u2019s inability to read and write, Parton started her Imagination Library in 1995 for the children within her home county. Today, the program spans five countries and gifts millions of free books each month to children around the world, according to the organization\u2019s website<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The award will be presented at the foundation\u2019s annual gala on Sept. 27 at the Billie Jean King Main Library. The gala will bring together hundreds of community leaders, education leaders, philanthropists, business partners and civic stakeholders who support public libraries and literacy initiatives throughout the region.<\/p>\n

\u201cToday, the world mourns an extraordinary humanitarian whose generous heart transformed millions of young lives,\u201d Garcia D\u00e1valos said. \u201cWe remain deeply committed to honoring Dolly\u2019s legacy by ensuring her vision of accessible childhood literacy lives on in our local communities. The Long Beach Public Library Foundation is proud to recognize the Imagination Library\u2019s extraordinary legacy, national reach, and continued leadership in advancing literacy and educational equity.\u201d<\/p>\n

Staff photographer Mindy Schauer contributed to this article.\u00a0<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Dolly Parton, the country music icon, had an incredible and personal impact on countless people across the country…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":444509,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[33],"tags":[7,179,23,131,133,132,137,10238],"class_list":["post-444508","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-long-beach","tag-california","tag-community","tag-local-news","tag-long-beach","tag-long-beach-headlines","tag-long-beach-news","tag-los-angeles-county","tag-obituaries"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/444508","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=444508"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/444508\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/444509"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=444508"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=444508"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=444508"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}