This week, the world lost someone who seemed almost larger than life: Dolly Parton. There were the rhinestones, the enormous hair, the unmistakable voice, and a wonderful ability to laugh at herself. But beneath all that sparkle was something even more beautiful, a life built around kindness, generosity, and the belief that we have a responsibility to leave the world better than we found it.

And remarkably, Dolly Parton left a very real mark on the Jewish world. In 1995, inspired by her father’s inability to read, Dolly created the Imagination Library, sending free books to young children each month. Years later, Jewish philanthropist Harold Grinspoon heard about Dolly’s project and had an idea: What if Jewish children received beautiful Jewish books in their homes? That inspiration became PJ Library, which today brings Jewish stories, traditions, values, and memories into hundreds of thousands of homes around the world, and fills the table in our congregation’s foyer. 

There is something wonderfully Jewish about that legacy. Pirkei Avot teaches, mitzvah goreret mitzvah, one mitzvah leads to another. We never really know where an act of goodness will travel.

Dolly Parton probably never imagined that helping children in Tennessee discover books would someday help Jewish children discover Shabbat, holidays, Torah, and their own Jewish stories. But that is the extraordinary magic of goodness: once we put it into the world, it no longer belongs only to us.

Dolly’s memory reminds us that a life may sparkle on the outside, but its true beauty is measured by the light it leaves behind. May her light continue to shine brightly and continue to inspire each of us to do the same. 

Shabbat Shalom, With love, Rabbi Shara

Don’t forget, on the first day of Rosh Hashanah, we’ll quite literally sweeten the New Year together with a Rosh Hashanah dessert potluck following services. Everyone is invited to bring something delicious to share!