There’s no place like home for the holidays and that is why Dolly created Dollywood’s Smoky Mountain Christmasfest. Dolly’s love of Christmas is represented in this one-of-a-kind festival. It is complete with millions of Christmas lights and holiday entertainment for the whole family. Dolly talks about the festival explaining,
“I just love Christmas here in my Smoky Mountain home and I wanted a place where families could spend time together and make some priceless memories. So we strung two million lights and transformed Dollywood into a magical winter wonderland.”
Also added in 1990 was Imagination Station, an interactive children’s play zone in the Country Fair area.
Dollywood’s fourth season was celebrated with the opening of the park’s first outdoor roller coaster, Thunder Express! As Dolly released hundreds of lightning bolt balloons, she launched the first ride out of the station.
Situated into the mountainside of the park's rugged terrain, Thunder Express at Dollywood was a mine themed roller coaster featuring two trains. Dolly said,
“My brothers and sisters and me came up with some pretty odd contraptions when we were little, but our imaginations had never conjured up anything quite like this.”
Dolly opened her theme park’s front gates to welcome some of country music’s best at her new Dolly Parton’s Celebrity Theater. The theater hosted the new ‘Showcase of Stars’ concert series.
This state-of-the-art, 1,739-seat theater debuted with a display featuring Dolly’s friends and fellow musicians. The concert series delighted guests of Dollywood. 'Showcase of Stars' featuring performances by the biggest names in country music, all from Dolly’s home in East Tennessee!
With the successful launch of Dollywood in 1986, Dolly’s attention quickly turned to working with the management of the park to identify ways to better serve the children of Sevier County. Although for many years she provided money to help the Sevier County High School band with scholarships, she wanted to do even more for the kids in her hometown.
All agreed there was a need for a foundation to establish and fund these good works. In April of 1988, The Dollywood Foundation was created. The original board members were Dolly, Ted Miller, Barbara Joines, Ken Bell, Charles Kite, Edna Rogers, Jo Blalock, Bob DeBusk, Ann Warden and Jack Parton.
The initial effort was targeted at providing scholarships for seniors at the local high schools and interestingly enough, to encourage the members of Dolly’s fan club to do more to help children. This was an important first step for a home-grown foundation on a journey that would ultimately lead to a global presence positively impacting the lives of millions of children.
As one more way to showcase her love for the Smoky Mountains, Dolly’s newest addition to Dollywood was built into the mountains surrounding the park. Mountain Slidewinder takes you on a journey through the actual mountain terrain as you make your way to the boarding station for this water toboggan thriller. Families slide down the mountainside along high-banked curves at breathtaking speeds.
She also added something for the family members who prefer to stay on dry land, with her addition of Daydream Ridge. The play area has a log climbing structure and children’s rides at the base of Mountain Slidewinder.
