Dollars for Dolly Campaign Aims to Turn Small Gifts Into Big Community Impact

A new Front Royal giving campaign inspired by Dolly Parton is encouraging residents to turn a few dollars into something bigger by supporting the local nonprofit organizations that matter most to them.

“Dollars for Dolly” began as an idea from local Realtor and community volunteer Beth Waller to support Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library. After Waller reached out to Front Royal Mayor Lori Cockrell, the idea quickly grew into a broader community effort designed to connect donors with a variety of nonprofit organizations.

Cockrell and Waller explain how the project came together and how residents and organizations can participate.

The campaign plays off Sept. 25 — or 9/25 — and Parton’s well-known song and movie “9 to 5.”

Waller initially envisioned Sept. 25 as a day to encourage donations to Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library, which provides books to young children. Cockrell said she immediately liked the idea, especially because of her background as an educator and her belief in getting books into children’s hands at an early age.

But the two soon began thinking beyond one organization.

“There are so many great organizations in our community that could benefit from small donations,” Cockrell said.

Because the Town of Front Royal was becoming involved through a proclamation, Cockrell said she wanted to create an opportunity that could benefit many organizations rather than focusing solely on one.

The idea expanded again when Councilwoman Melissa DeDomenico-Payne suggested extending the effort beyond a single day and into the Thanksgiving season.

Instead of ending on Sept. 25, Dollars for Dolly is expected to continue through Giving Tuesday on Dec. 1, giving residents more time to discover local organizations and make contributions.

The centerpiece of the effort will be DollarsForDolly.com, a website designed to serve as a directory connecting potential donors directly with participating nonprofit organizations.

Nonprofits interested in participating can submit information about their organization, its mission, and how to donate.

The campaign itself will not collect or process the money.

Instead, visitors can browse participating organizations, follow links directly to their donation pages, or find other information about how to contribute.

“The town isn’t going to collect money,” Waller said.

That setup, organizers said, allows Dollars for Dolly to serve as a connection point rather than a middleman. Donors can choose which organizations to support and give directly.

The Rotary Club of the Northern Shenandoah Valley is also supporting the effort.

Organizers stressed that donations do not have to be large to make a difference.

A person might give $5 to one organization and $10 to another. Others could create matching challenges, promising to match contributions up to a certain amount.

The idea is that many small donations can add up when people participate together.

Cockrell recalled recently taking part in a social media campaign that encouraged people to donate $5 and challenge five friends to do the same.

Within a day, several people responded.

“My five turned into really 30 by the time they did,” Cockrell said. “And I thought, well, that was kind of easy.”

Waller’s original inspiration remains closely connected to early childhood literacy.

She has a long history with Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library, first learning about the program when her own children were young. Through the program, enrolled children receive books in the mail, giving them a collection of their own before they reach school age.

Waller recalled the excitement her children felt when a book arrived addressed specifically to them.

“There’s something about having something,” she said. “This is addressed to Sarah Waller.”

After the Imagination Library program was no longer available locally, Waller hoped it would someday return.

That happened through a partnership involving local supporters, the Warren Coalition and Rotary Club of the Northern Shenandoah Valley. The local program, known as HALO — Helping All Little Ones Read — once again connected area children with Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library.

Waller said more than 400 children have participated in the program since its return.

She is now offering a $5,000 matching contribution to help raise additional money for HALO and expand its reach.

While HALO helped inspire Dollars for Dolly, Waller and Cockrell said they want the new campaign to introduce residents to many organizations serving the community.

“It’s gotten so much bigger than just Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library — a wonderful cause,” Waller said. “But there are so many causes, and it’s a way that I’m hoping the community can learn about nonprofits they might not even know of.”

Cockrell said that is one reason participation by local organizations will be important.

Nonprofits will need to visit the Dollars for Dolly website and submit their own information. Organizers are not automatically adding organizations to the directory.

The sooner organizations participate, Cockrell said, the sooner donors can find them.

For residents, the site is intended to provide a simple place to discover organizations they may have heard about but never knew how to support.

Someone interested in helping children may find one organization, while another donor may be interested in food assistance, health, education or another community need.

Donors are not required to choose only one.

Organizers also hope matching gifts will encourage people to stretch those contributions further. A resident, business or other supporter could pledge a matching amount to a favorite nonprofit and encourage others to help reach that goal.

Waller said she would eventually like to see Dollars for Dolly grow beyond Front Royal and Warren County. Other communities could potentially use the same idea to highlight their own nonprofit organizations.

For now, however, the focus is on signing up local organizations and spreading the word to residents.

Cockrell said the longer giving period should give people multiple opportunities to participate. Someone who cannot contribute immediately might be able to give later in October or November, while others might decide to donate more than once.

Even after the initial campaign ends, organizers see potential for the website to keep connecting people with nonprofit groups.

For Waller, the project remains rooted in the example of giving that first inspired her idea.

“Spread the word,” she said. “Thank you, Dolly Parton, for your impact.”

Town Talk, sponsored by National Media Services, Inc., is a Royal Examiner series that introduces you to local entrepreneurs, business owners, nonprofit leaders, and public officials who help shape Warren County. Conversations cover a wide range of topics about our community and the people making a difference.