Dolly Parton granted the wishes of a 12-year-old boy with Down's syndrome by not only setting up a meeting, but also singing a duet with the young boy. The legendary country singer met up with fan Gage Blackwell on Saturday at a restaurant in her Dollywood theme park, where the two talked and then sang some of her hits together.
"There are truly no words to explain how much it meant to Gage, myself and my family for him to get to meet Dolly in person," Gage's mother, Lynnae Blackwell, told TODAY.com. "Gage loves country music and for him to get to sit with and sing with someone he idolises like Dolly was just heartwarming."
Gage also took to his own Facebook page to express his excitement at the meeting, writing: "This was the best! I love Dolly and I want to marry her!"
Dolly Parton sang a medley of hits with a young fan
The meeting was arranged after someone at Gage's school saw a video shared on his page talking about how he'd love to meet Dolly, and encouraged Lynnae to reach out to Dolly's business associate, Ted Miller. Within days, a ten minute meet-and-greet had been set up.
When she was introduced to the young fan, Dolly said he looked like Kenny Rogers, before breaking out into their famous duet Islands in the Stream. Gage joined in with the song, and the pair continued to sing a medley of Dolly's hits together.
"You sing like Tami and Loretta too," Dolly told Gage. "You're just a very versatile guy. We make quite a team."
This was the best!!!!!! I love Dolly and I want to marry her!!!!
Posted by Gage Blackwell on Sunday, 22 March 2015
Gage's Facebook video of the meeting has received over one million views, and he has since shared further videos, including one where Dolly gets everyone in the room singing Nine to Five.
Lynnae said she was "overwhelmed by the amount of love from her to him, with her just having met him," adding, "as a mother, that was just an amazing moment, to see how happy she made him."