Country legend Dolly Parton reportedly donated $1 million to Vanderbilt University back in April, as soon as the pandemic caused nationwide shutdowns. This money was eventually used to help support the Moderna COVID-19 vaccine, which has a reported 95 percent efficacy.
Parton donated to the university after her close friend, Dr. Naji Abumrad of the Vanderbilt Institute for Infection, Immunology and Inflammation at Vanderbilt University in Tennessee, told her that they the school was making “some exciting achievements” while searching for a COVID-19 cure. The two figures met back in 2014 after Parton was involved in a car accident and treated at Vanderbilt.
“My longtime friend Dr. Naji Abumrad, who’s been involved in research at Vanderbilt for many years, informed me that they were making some exciting advancements towards that research of the coronavirus for a cure,” Parton wrote back in April. “I am making a donation of $1 million to Vanderbilt towards that research and to encourage people that can afford it to make donations.”
This vaccine is separate from the one that was announced by Pfizer earlier this month, which has recorded an over 90 percent efficacy rate. This news led to an increase in stock prices for various companies including Live Nation, whose prices rose over 20 percent. Other companies such as Ticketmaster were reportedly working on way to include vaccines as a part of their post-pandemic safety plans, however the company has since announced that articles regarding vaccine confirmations are false.
Fans of Parton can still enjoy new music from the performer, who released a Christmas album in October. Parton is known for being charitable, hosting the Imagination Library, which mails out age-appropriate donated books to children from across the United States, United Kingdom, Canada, Austrialia and the Republic of Ireland.
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