Why Did Jeff Bezos Give Dolly Parton $100 Million?

Jeff Bezos, the billionaire creator of Amazon, gave iconic singer and philanthropist Dolly Parton a $100 million prize to contribute to her favorite charities.

The singer of "Jolene" has been chosen as the newest recipient of the 'Bezos Courage & Civility Award,' which is given to leaders who "pursue solutions with courage and civility."

Dolly Parton Receives $100 Million From Jeff Bezos

The owner of Blue Origin and his longtime partner, news reporter Lauren Sanchez, presented the astounding prize on Friday.

"I believe that those who can contribute should do so, financially and emotionally. I'll try my best to use this money for good," Dolly Parton said.

Per NY Post, Dolly Parton also thanked Sanchez and Bezos online. Parton, a longstanding activist and philanthropist, gave $1 million to the vaccine research projects at Vanderbilt University Medical Center during the coronavirus pandemic. Her donations were toward the COVID-19 vaccine developed by Moderna.

In 1988, Dolly Parton founded the Dollywood Foundation, which later became 'The Imagination Library', a program that aids children all over the globe in accessing books, and she expressed her feelings of "honor and pride" in an interview with BBC's 'The One Show' at the time.

As part of her humanitarian work in her native Tennessee, Dolly Parton established the Dolly Parton Scholarship, which awards recipients with $15,000 to go toward their college studies.

Bezos gave CNN contributor Van Jones and chef José Andrés $100 million apiece in 2017. At the time, Bezos, the founder and former CEO of Amazon.com, stated at a news conference that the donation was unconditional, as per CNN.

Last year, Bezos stated, "They can give it all to their own charity. Or they may distribute the money. The choice is theirs."

Jeff Bezos Focuses on Philantropy

Bezos is second only to Elon Musk in terms of net worth, with a reported $171 billion, according to Forbes. Bezos has recently been noted for making charitable contributions. The founder of Amazon contributed $100 million in 2019 to fight homelessness, and he gave the nonprofits the discretion over how to use the money.

Since he left his position as CEO of Amazon in July of last year, he has donated $200 million to the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum and established the $10 billion Earth Fund to combat climate change.

Bezos' longtime girlfriend Lauren Sanchez remarked at the ceremony that the award "recognizes leaders that aim high, discover answers, and who always do it with civility."

One in 10 US children now have access to books because to the Dolly Parton's Imagination Library charity, founded by the Jolene singer. The UK, Ireland, Australia, and Canada are also served by it.

Chef Jose Andres was the previous recipient and received it for his World Central Kitchen, which provides food to those in need following natural catastrophes all over the world. He fed Ukrainians with his $100 million.

The prize was also given the year before to Van Jones, the creator of Dreams.org. Jones stated in March that he had ten years to distribute the money completely. Since giving up his position as an active member of the Amazon team, Bezos and his girlfriend have concentrated their efforts on philanthropy, Daily Mail reported.

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