Remembering Dolly Parton through her books
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Dolly Parton reads to children during a 2022 NBC special. Photo: Katherine Bomboy/NBC via Getty Images
When I heard the news that country music icon Dolly Parton had died, I didn't think about her songs. I thought about her books.
Why it matters: Parton's Imagination Library has sent free books to children worldwide since she launched the program 31 years ago.
- That includes over 400,000 Ohio children, the recipients of nearly 28 million books and counting.
I signed up my 2-year-old son when he was just a few days old. Now he checks the mailbox with me and looks forward to cracking open his new "Dolly book" every month.
- Parton's philanthropy resulted in countless memories, like learning nursery rhymes with the Very Hungry Caterpillar. It also helped us find new favorites, like "Buffalo Fluffalo."
- I also have her to thank (or blame?) for the hours spent with "Llama Llama Red Pajama."
- Her program has helped inspire a love of books that will last long after the deliveries stop.
Fun fact: Ohio has the highest Imagination Library participation of any state, with over 60% of eligible children enrolled and all counties on board.
- In Franklin County, around 45,000 kids are enrolled.
Flashback: Parton visited Columbus in 2022 to celebrate the program's success. Inspired by her father's inability to read and write, she called it "one of the greatest things that I've ever done in my life."
The bottom line: "I'll be as proud of this as anything I've ever done," she said. "When they lay me down, I'll be thinking of the Imagination Library."
Sign up your child to receive books until their 5th birthday or donate to the cause in Parton's memory.
