In 1995, Dolly Parton began her efforts to raise the literacy levels of the children in her home state of Tennessee by offering free books to children from birth to age five through the foundation she created. By 2022 her foundation was mailing 2 million books monthly not only to children in Tennessee but to all 50 states and worldwide to Canada (added in 2006), the United Kingdom (2007), Australia (2013) and the Republic of Ireland (2019).
Every child enrolled in the program receives a free book monthly from birth to age 5 which is mailed to their home in clear plastic packaging addressed specifically to them. The only thing that Dolly Parton’s foundation asks is that the parent reads to their child daily, not only to encourage a love of reading, but to inspire the child’s own imagination and curiosity, thus the Foundation’s name: The Dolly Parton Imagination Library. Many of the books also include reading guides and questions for the parents to use when they read to their child to enhance learning and create a dialogue between the parent and child.
While Dolly’s foundation works directly with educators and authors to keep the books relevant, and coordinates all the printing and mailing of the books, funds are raised locally (either through community governments or agencies, such as our Waterman Village group) to pay for the printing and the mailing of the twelve books per year. The current annual cost for each child is $36.
I recently heard a quote that I thought profound: “Children learn to read by the third grade. After that, they read to learn.”
Today, with so many on-line distractions, computer games, text messaging, AI programs that answer all our questions etc. we all need to slow down and to self manage how we use our time. Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library builds bonds between the parent and child, inspires a love of reading, and sets expectations for the future. When I started grade school, our first books were about Dick and Jane. “See Jane run.” Etc. If read to daily by the parent or even an older sibling, a child participating in Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library will be reading complex sentences before they start kindergarten, and will be well prepared “to read in order to learn!”
Joining with others at Waterman Village in Mt. Dora to bring Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library into our community is both an honor, a pleasure and more fun than I expected. Meeting young families, hearing their enthusiasm and gratitude for the program gives me great satisfaction. But knowing that this program is specifically designed to inspire a child’s curiosity, imagination and desire to read for the rest of their lives, gives me profound joy and hope for our future.
Parents can go to the website: imaginationlibrary.com and enter their zip code to learn if the program is available in their area.