The You’ve Been Parton’ed campaign works much like the congratulatory pop-up cards you see in yards or flocks of flamingos that have made their way around town. Individuals can purchase a party of Dolly Partons to be delivered to a specified location, where the party will last for 24 hours. The signs then move on to the next lucky home. Participants also can pay to have the party picked up, “Parton” someone else, buy insurance to avoid being Parton’ed, find out who Parton’ed them, or purchase a Dolly keepsake. (Submitted photo)
Community, Latest News

You’ve Been Parton’ed

by The Dominion Post

Women United kick off awareness, fundraising campaign for library

Newsroom@DominionPost.com

If you wake up and think you see that a Dolly Parton party has taken place in your yard, you’re not dreaming. You’ve been “Parton’ed.”

Women United, an affinity group of the United Way of Monongalia and Preston Counties, is bringing the iconic celebrity to yards throughout Monongalia County to raise awareness of our local Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library. DPIL provides free books to more than 2,230 area children.

The You’ve Been Parton’ed campaign works much like the congratulatory pop-up cards you see in yards or flocks of flamingos that have made their way around town. Individuals can purchase a party of Dolly Partons to be delivered to a specified location where the party will last for 24 hours. The signs then move on to the next lucky home. Participants also can pay to have the party picked up, “Parton” someone else, buy insurance to avoid being Parton’ed, find out who Parton’ed them, or purchase a Dolly keepsake.

“Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library is such an amazing resource to encourage reading and enhance literacy for children throughout the world,” Sabrina Cave, co-chair of Women United, said. “We wanted to raise awareness in our local community so that we can expand this important program and be able to provide even more free books to area children. This campaign is a unique and fun way to do that, while also showcasing the women behind this incredible program.”

DPIL launched in Monongalia County in May 2018 and is available to any child from birth to 5 with a Monongalia County address. Women United, a group of more than 300 local women, is focused on ensuring all children are prepared for school and given the tools to succeed in life. The group supports educational programming, including DPIL, through fundraising efforts, including the popular Power of the Purse event. The cost per child is $25 a year or $125 to sponsor a child throughout five years of eligibility.

The campaign will run Monday through Nov. 19. To “Parton” someone or to learn more about how you can support DPIL, visit the “You’ve Been Parton’ed” website – https://www.unitedwaympc.org/parton. Individuals also can support the campaign by texting “PARTON” to 41444.

Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library is dedicated to inspiring a love of reading by gifting books free of charge to children ages birth to 5, through funding shared by Dolly Parton and local community partners in the United States, United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, and Republic of Ireland. Since its inception, more than 1.8 million children have received books through the library.

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