TO HONOR AND RECOGNIZE COUNTRY MUSIC LEGEND DOLLY PARTON FOR HER CONTRIBUTIONS TO THE MUSIC INDUSTRY, TO THE ECONOMIC HEALTH OF THE PALMETTO STATE, AND TO CHARITABLE CAUSES WORLDWIDE, AND WELCOME HER BACK TO SOUTH CAROLINA FOR THE GRAND OPENING OF PIRATES VOYAGE IN MYRTLE BEACH ON JUNE 3, 2011, AND TO DECLARE THIS DAY "DOLLY PARTON DAY" IN SOUTH CAROLINA.
Whereas, the members of the South Carolina General Assembly are pleased to welcome country music star Dolly Parton to the grand opening of Pirates Voyage in Myrtle Beach on June 3, 2011; and
Whereas, an entertainment icon and the most successful name in the country music industry, Dolly Parton has recorded twenty-six number-one singles in her more than four decades as a county music singer, and has produced forty-two top-ten albums; and
Whereas, this singer and songwriter has gleaned eight Grammy awards and the 2011 Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award, Kennedy Center Honors, Country Music, Gospel Music, and International Songwriter Hall of Fame membership, ten awards from the Country Music Association and the association's highest honor, Entertainer of the Year, in 1978; and
Whereas, in 1967, she began what would become a successful television and film career as a singer on the syndicated-television program, The Porter Wagoner Show. Since then, she has created her own syndicated television and network shows, has been nominated for Oscars, Tony Awards, and Emmy Awards, and is the only person to receive the Goodhousekeeping Seal of Approval; and
Whereas, Ms. Parton's investments in numerous charitable works include a literacy program, "Dolly Parton's Imagination Library," which began in her home of Sevier County, Tennessee, and has spread to more than seven hundred communities in forty-eight of the United States and to Canada and the United Kingdom; and
Whereas, the program mails one book each month to every child enrolled from the time of birth until the child enters kindergarten, totaling more than seven and a half million free books a year; and
Whereas, in the eighteen years since the Dixie Stampede opened in Myrtle Beach, seven million visitors have enjoyed entertainment and vacation opportunities in the beautiful coastal city, and Dixie Stampede has employed approximately one hundred seventy-eight people annually during this period; and
Whereas, through an eleven-million-dollar investment, the Dixie Stampede will be transformed into Pirates Voyage, and this new venue, opening in June 2011, will include the interactive experience of a pirates' village, followed by a five-course pirate feast in the Crimson and Sapphire pirate camps; and
Whereas, to further honor her, the South Carolina General Assembly declares Friday, June 3, 2011, as "Dolly Parton Day" in South Carolina; and
Whereas, the members of the South Carolina General Assembly are grateful for the impact that Dolly Parton, the Queen of Country Music, has had on the economic prosperity of our State and for the jobs and quality entertainment she has provided for our tourism industry. Now, therefore,
Be it resolved by the House of Representatives, the Senate concurring:
That the members of the South Carolina General Assembly, by this resolution, honor and recognize country music legend Dolly Parton for her outstanding contributions to the music industry, to the economic health of the Palmetto State, and to charitable causes worldwide, and welcome her back to South Carolina for the grand opening of Pirates Voyage in Myrtle Beach on June 3, 2011, and to declare this day "Dolly Parton Day" in South Carolina.
Be it further resolved that a copy of this resolution be presented to Dolly Parton.