NEW HOPE, PA — The Delaware River Joint Toll Bridge Commission will honor the late country music legend Dolly Parton by illuminating four of its bridges in pink on Friday and Saturday nights.
The bridges include the New Hope-Lambertville Toll Supported Free Bridge, the Uhlerstown-Frenchtown Bridge, and the Northampton Street Toll-Supported Free Bridge in Easton.
In addition, the "Trenton Makes The World Takes" sign on the Lower Trenton Bridge between Morrisville and Trenton will be illuminated in pink.
Parton, a country music icon whose songwriting, voice, humor, and unmistakable image made her one of the most recognizable entertainers in American culture, died on Tuesday at the age of 80 in her native Tennessee.
Her nephew and head of security, Bryan Seaver, confirmed her passing in a video posted on her Instagram account. Her publicist, Marcel Pariseau, said in a statement that she had had a brief battle with cancer and died surrounded by loved ones at the Vanderbilt-Ingram Cancer Center in Tennessee.
Parton wrote hundreds of songs, including classics like "Jolene," "Coat of Many Colors," and "I Will Always Love You," which have totaled more than 100 million in worldwide sales and more than 1 billion online streams.
"She never saw a door she couldn't open, and the doors she opened made and changed history," Seaver said in the video. "She has always been on your television, your record player, your CD and on your phone playlist, becoming an extended part of your family, whether you liked it or not."
'The Very Best Of The American Dream'
Entertainers and political leaders, including the president, publicly mourned Parton's passing on Tuesday.
"This is a true loss for millions of people. There has never been anyone like her, and never will," President Donald Trump wrote in a post on Truth Social. "... Rest in Peace, Dolly! The World loves you."
Trump ordered the American flag lowered for a week in Parton's honor.
"Well, I just got the news that my buddy Dolly passed onto the higher and greater side. Dolly, thank you for all the wonderful things you did for us here on earth," country singer and actress Reba McEntire wrote in the caption of an Instagram post. "... She's gonna have a blast in heaven singing all her favorite songs with all her family and friends who have gone on before her."
Country music legend George Strait wrote in an Instagram story that Parton "had such a huge impact on so many people all over the world."
"Today, Tennessee lost one of our greatest ambassadors in Dolly Parton," U.S. Rep. Tim Burchett, of Tennessee's second district, posted on X. "Her music inspired generations of Americans, and her philanthropic work helped provide greater access to education for countless young Tennesseans.
"She represented the very best of the American Dream, and her legacy will live on for generations to come. Rest in peace, Dolly."
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