BY AMANDA POSEY
As a child, did you know what you wanted to be when you grew up? And where did the ideas for your dreams come from?
Famous country singer and the Book Lady, Dolly Parton, has the answer.
“The seeds of these dreams are often found in books, and the seeds you help plant in your community can grow across the world,” Parton says.
While reading is for every month of the year, March, in particular, is a time to celebrate the power of reading.
Read Across America — and Dr. Seuss’ birthday — was held Wednesday, and the entire month has been designated as National Reading Month.
We celebrated reading by promoting our local Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library, a great way to get books into the hands of children.
The Imagination Library is a program that delivers one free, high-quality, age-appropriate book per month to children from birth to age 5. The United Way’s affinity group, Women United, launched the Imagination Library in Monongalia County on May 23, 2018. The group is the primary stakeholder in the Mon County program and holds several events, including Power of the Purse, each year to raise money to send books to children.
In Mon County, there are 2,285 children currently receiving books in the Imagination Library program, and 1,367 have graduated. The program has a standing presence in Preston County.
Parton’s dream of parents reading with their younger children has been realized with a whopping 176,606,329 books being distributed in the United States and around the globe since the program’s inception. And the Imagination Library continued mailing books through the COVID-19 pandemic, so there’s been no interruption in opportunities for parents to connect with their kids through reading.
So why do we spend so much time promoting reading? It just makes sense for early childhood education. According to Scholastic, a student who reads 20 minutes per day will be exposed to 1.8 million words per year and scores in the 90th percentile on standardized tests.
That’s just one of the many reasons why Women United and the United Way have continued to find ways to help fund this program. But we can’t do it without the help of donors.
It only costs $25 to sponsor a child for one year in Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library, meaning that child will receive one quality book a month for a year.
Perhaps you want to sponsor a child for all 5 years, which is only $125. And what better time to do so than now, during National Reading Month.
If there’s a new baby on the way amongst your family or friends, you can give the gift of reading when you donate to the Imagination Library and receive a certificate to present to your loved one. It’s a great idea for those who are passionate about literacy, new mothers, or even in memory of a loved one.
To donate and get your certificate, text DPILGIFT to 41444 or visit www.unitedwaympc.org/giftofreading.
If you’d simply like to donate to the program, learn more about it, or sign your child up, visit www.unitedwaympc.org/dpil.
And keep watching for more information about Power of the Purse, the annual fundraiser that benefits Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library. There will be purse raffles, silent auctions, food, drinks, and entertainment. It is planned for 5:30-8:30 p.m. June 23 at Erickson Alumni Center. Tickets will be available soon. For more information, visit www.unitedwaympc.org/potp.
Amanda Posey is the director of marketing and communications for the United Way of Monongalia and Preston Counties. She can be reached at amanda@unitedwaympc.org.
