Dedicated to Dottie

Under a heaping helping of "Country Sunshine," McMinnville's latest piece of public art was dedicated with the help of an all-star cast of attendees just before noon Wednesday.

A mural in tribute to McMinnville native and Country Music Hall of Fame member painted by Florida-based professional muralist Lucinda Nehemias was officially dedicated. The public was invited to the event, and several members of West's family were in attendance, including Dottie's sons Kerry and Dale West and granddaughter Tess Frizzell. The project has been in the planning stages for years and was fully funded by a grant from the Tennessee Commission for the Arts.

Nehemias was aided in the project with assist from the community which was invited to help complete the mural. With guidance from Nehemias, the public was given paint and led by numbers to help fill in fenceposts, a bluebird, daisies and Dottie's dress. Nehemias then added the finishing details, wrapping up the project which began Tuesday, May 12 and was officially completed Tuesday, May 19.

The ceremony was emceed by WOW Country's Justin Reed and featured several speakers, beginning with Park Theater Assistant Manager Ashley Gillentine Wright.

"I'd like to give a big thank you to McMinnville Public Works Director Lyndon Bussell for finding this grant and writing the application in 2024 to make the mural idea a reality," Wright said. "We got the grant in 2025 and with a lot of behind-the-scenes work from a lot of people, here we are. Thank you to the Tennessee Arts Commission for fully funding this project."

Wright's remarks were followed by Nehemias' account of the experience of spending a week working on the mural, one of many she has completed over the course of her career.

"This has been the most sentimental project I've ever gotten to work on," Nehemias said. "People will often walk by while I'm working on a mural and call it beautiful, but for people to walk by and tell stories about Dottie and how much she meant to so many people, it was honestly an honor to try to do her justice and to capture her hair, her smile and the country sunshine. I want to say thank you to the community who has made it a priority to honor her. It's been a great thing to be a part of."

Frizzell, a singer, songwriter and artist, was credited as one of the first cheerleaders of the project who offered advice and the family's blessing in choosing the image, color scheme and the artist who would complete the mural. She spoke to the assembled crowd just minutes after appearing on WOW Country's The Justin Reed Show.

"This is such a proud day. I have to thank Ashley and (Park Theater Manager) Joe (Harvey) so much from the bottom of my heart," Frizzell said. "It means so much to my family. This has been years in the making. We've been talking about it ever since I've been doing a fall show here at the Park Theater around my grandmother's birthday. That's been a few years, and Joe and Ashley were just not going to give up. They were not going to rest until they saw this painted. This is really thanks to them and to Lucinda for such a gorgeous job. As I said on the radio show, not only would my grandmother be so proud to be here in her hometown on the side of the Park Theater, but she would also be so proud her hair and eyelashes look great.

"In 2018 our family was blessed to see my grandmother permanently honored in the rotunda of the Country Music Hall of Fame. But there was a huge part of her heart in McMinnville and to know she equally has a permanent home here just makes me so proud. She loved people, music and to host. This is so fitting that she is on a building which hosts so much music. It's like she's getting to host all of this music coming to her town."

Warren County Historian Jimmy Haley remarked on the impact Dottie had, both on the world of country music as well as on her hometown.

"Warren County has been blessed with a lot of musicians," Haley said. "A lot of them move on and forget where they came from, but Dottie never forgot her hometown. She always bragged about where she was from and her humble roots. She played at the Park Theater and went on to play at Tennessee Tech. As her career grew, she never forgot her home. Her career spanned decades and she had numerous awards, but 'Country Sunshine' was that one song that represented who she was, where she came from and her roots in this community. Even in the song's lyrics, 'Saturday night dance and a picture show,' the picture show was here at the Park. She loved this community, she loved her family, she loved the artists she played with, and she loved her life and we miss her."

Park Theater management expressed thanks to Nehemias; McMinnville Tourism, Grants and Economic Development Manager Jordan Pupols; McMinnville Parks and Recreation Director Justin Scott; McMinnville City Administrator Nolan Ming; McMinnville Maintenance Supervisor Cody Smartt and his team and the public who came to assist in the project. Thanks were also issued to the theater's downtown neighbors, including Citizens Tri-County Bank, Topz, Flat Foot Records, Main Street Media, Main Street Journal, the McMinnville-Warren County Chamber of Commerce, Raven Young, Main Street McMinnville and Allok'sions Flowers for support throughout the process.