ORLANDO, Fla. – She was known for hits like “9 to 5″ and “Islands in the Stream,” but music legend Dolly Parton was also known for her efforts to boost literacy.

In 2023, the singer’s foundation celebrated giving away its 200 millionth book for free to more than 2.5 million kids through Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library. Every month, hundreds of kids in Central Florida receive a book from the Imagination Library mailed to their homes. Parton says she started the library in 1995 in honor of her dad.

“Inspiring kids to love to read became my mission,” said Parton. “Before he passed away, my daddy told me the Imagination Library was probably the most important thing I had ever done. I can’t tell you how much that meant to me because I created the Imagination Library as a tribute to my daddy. He was the smartest man I have ever known, but I know in my heart his inability to read probably kept him from fulfilling all of his dreams.”

“It just gives us an opportunity to sit together in a circle and just go over the words,” said Marjorie Bernadel, whose children have received books from the Imagination Library. “Sometimes they don’t understand, like, ‘Mommy, what does this mean?’ And it gives me an opportunity to explain it to them. So that elaborates on their vocabulary. And when they go to school, they’re ready.”

Here’s how it works: The Imagination Library has partners in five Central Florida counties: Flagler, Volusia, Lake, Orange and Polk. Those local nonprofit partners sign up kids — ages five and under — in their communities, then help cover the cost of the books, which is about $30 per child, per year.

ORANGE COUNTY

Frank McMillian spearheads the program in Orange County through the Rotary Club of College Park. In 2012, they signed up their first child. Over the years, the club has signed up about 1,500 kids in Orange County and will surpass 37,000 books being delivered locally.

“Studies have shown that learning to read before age five is vital,” said McMillian. “One of the interesting things that I’ve learned along the way, not necessarily for five-year-olds, but for juvenile offenders in jail, 85% of them have a reading deficiency. So, if we can eliminate that reading deficiency early on, we might keep our juveniles out of the jail.”

While the program is free for families to join, the Imagination Library’s nonprofit partners like the Rotary Club of College Park have to cover the cost for participants.

“We started out in the 32804 zip code, which is College Park. We decided to open up to kids in 32805, 32808 and 32810 zip codes, which is essentially Parramore, Pine Hills and the Eatonville area,” said McMillian. “For a while, we had to cut back because we didn’t have the funding. Our funding has come primarily from our club members and from the community. Recently, we’ve had some fairly decent grants, which we really appreciate, but our Taste of College Park event every year also provides substantial funding.”

LAKE COUNTY

Triangle Community Alliance, Inc. is the library’s new partner in Lake County. The non-profit organization just started enrolling children in summer of 2023. Dozens of kids are expected to start receiving their first book this fall.

“The books are mailed directly to the home to the child every month from the time they’re enrolled as early as birth up to the age of five,” said Debi Weinert, president and founder of Triangle Community Alliance.

Weinert has been involved with local libraries for years but says the Dolly Parton Imagination Library is serving an unmet need.

“The libraries in Central Florida are phenomenal, but we’re still missing a significant part of the population. If people don’t read, their go-to is not to the library, it’s to the mall or it’s to the movies,” said Weinert. “So there are people that would never think to go to the library or to take their children to the library because they can’t read. Also, in order to partake in the library system, most of the time, you have to drive to the library and then you check out the books and then you return the books. But when you’re involved with the Dolly Parton Imagination Library, as early as birth up to age five, the children can accumulate a personal library of 60 books that they never have to get back.”

Weinert now organizes annual scarecrow contests to help cover the costs for the program in Lake County.

“We’re looking for donations, partners, sponsors, collaborators, maybe somebody has a lifelong dream about leaving a legacy,” said Weinert. “We have been happy to talk with them about an endowment or a bequeath, because we’d like to make their hearts’ dreams come true, too.”

For more information on the program in Lake County and how to donate, head to www.readtochildren.org.

VOLUSIA AND FLAGLER COUNTIES

The Early Learning Coalition of Flagler and Volusia Counties administers the program in those counties. The Flagler Imagination Library was started in June 2010 and has mailed 226,928 books to date. The Volusia County program began in February 2015 and has mailed 412,239 books to date. The organization is currently accepting new sign-ups, but they are not currently offering the program in Deltona. They are hoping to get support from local businesses and donors to offer the program there.

“Right now, we just don’t have the funding to support the number of kids eligible for the program in Deltona,” said Serena Piper, community partnerships coordinator for the Early Learning Coalition. “It costs $30/year to support one child. Since the program is free to families, we have to do a lot of fundraising and applying for grants to get it offered in Deltona.”

Since the Volusia program’s inception, it’s estimated 14,306 children have been served. Since Flagler was started, the estimate is 6,391 children.

To find a list of cities where they do offer the program in Volusia and Flagler Counties, head to: https://elcfv.org/dolly-partons-imagination-library/

POLK COUNTY

The United Way of Central Florida has administered the program in Polk County since 2008. According to the organization, there is currently a wait list for children to enroll in the program. During the 2022-2023 fiscal year, the United Way of Central Florida funded 22,000 books mailed to the homes of preschool children in Polk, Highlands and Hardee counties.

For more information on eligibility and to see if the Imagination Library is offered in your area head to the Imagination Library website.

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