STAUNTON – Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library for Staunton, Waynesboro and Augusta County has a new local program partner.
The Community Foundation of the Central Blue Ridge has agreed to serve that role for the international, book-gifting program with The Dollywood Foundation, Dolly Parton’s 501c3 organization.
The program mails a high quality, age-appropriate book each month to children from birth to age five, at no cost to the families.
Prior to the Community Foundation’s involvement, Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library was administered by the United Way of Staunton, Augusta County & Waynesboro.
The timely transition is good news for local participating families.
“First and foremost, by stepping into this role so quickly we can ensure that the children previously enrolled will experience no interruption in the delivery of their books,” said Dan Layman, CEO of the Community Foundation of the Central Blue Ridge. “We are also committed to making sure that all eligible families in our community know about the program and how to enroll their children.”
Augusta Health has always played a significant role in making sure children born at the hospital receive enrollment information about Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library.
Krystal Moyers, administrative director of community partnerships and communications at Augusta Health, believes the Community Foundation was the right community partner to continue the administration of the program.
“It’s such a relief,” Moyers said. “This is one of the programs, as we go through the transition with United Way, that I was highly invested in, not just in my involvement on the United Way board (of directors), but because of the Augusta Health partnership. We really wanted to ensure that it safely continued. Finding a partner that was invested and cared about it as much as I did – and our Augusta Health team did – was very important to me.”
Miriam Burrows, the director of educational programs at the Community Foundation, will serve as the main coordinator for the program.
“Adding Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library to the educational programs we offer feels like a perfect fit,” Burrows said. Buz Dawbarn, a member and driving force of the founding board of directors for the Community Foundation, once said, “‘The single most important thing we’ve got to do as a society is educate people.’ “I believe that’s true,” Burrows added. “It’s a beautiful thing when a child falls in love with a book, but that’s just the beginning. A love of reading and a love of learning can be a real gift to our community’s future.”
The uninterrupted continuation of Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library is good news for parents like Staunton resident Sarah Vincent.
“Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library has been a really fun program that we’ve enjoyed since (my son) Will was a baby,” Vincent said. “Reading is part of our bedtime routine every night, and this program keeps new books coming right to our door. That’s a win for me as a mom, because it’s one thing off of my to-do list. The selection is great, too. He (Will) loves receiving his book in the mail from ‘Miss Dolly.’ It’s just something special for him, and honestly for me, too.”
Although the books are free for families, there is a cost to the administering organization. The Community Foundation is assuming the responsibility for raising 50% of the enrollment fee for each child, which is presently $2.60 a month. The Commonwealth of Virginia is committed to providing funding for the remaining 50 percent.
“We have relationships with donors throughout our community who we believe will be eager to support this initiative,” Layman shared.
Community members, local businesses, civic groups and others can make tax-deductible contributions directly to the Community Foundation of the Central Blue Ridge (www.cfcbr.org) and designate their gifts to the Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library Fund.
To learn more or find out how to register your child, you can email Mariam Burrows at mb******@***br.org.
About Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library
Since launching in 1995, Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library has become the preeminent early childhood book-gifting program in the world. The flagship program of The Dollywood Foundation, a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization, has gifted over 250 million free books in the United States, Canada, United Kingdom, Australia, and The Republic of Ireland. This is achieved through funding shared by The Dollywood Foundation and Local Community Partners. The Imagination Library mails more than 3 million high-quality, age-appropriate books directly to children’s homes each month. Each child enrolled in the program receives one book per month from birth to age five – at no cost to families. Dolly envisioned creating a lifelong love of reading and inspiring children to Dream More, Learn More, Care More and Be More(™).
The program’s impact has been widely researched, and results demonstrate its positive impact on early childhood development and literacy skills. Penguin Random House is the exclusive publisher of Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library. For more information, please visit imaginationlibrary.com.
