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Dolly Parton created Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library in 1995 to inspire a love of reading in children.
Today the DPIL mails more than 2.6 million books directly to children’s homes every month — at no cost to families. Children enrolled in the program receive a free high-quality age-appropriate book each month from birth to age 5.
Through a partnership between the Dollywood Foundation and New Providence Presbyterian Church, the Imagination Library is now available to Rockbridge County, Lexington and Buena Vista children.
A kickoff party for the DPIL will be held on Saturday, April 27, from 10 a.m. to noon at the Rockbridge Regional Library in Lexington. Children from birth to age 5 who register for the program that day will take home a new book to enjoy. Representatives from New Providence will be there to assist with registration and to answer questions.
New Providence members became interested in supporting the DPIL when they learned that Rockbridge area children did not have access to the free book program. The church wants to ensure that all children in the area have a great selection of books at home and to encourage parents and children to read together.
Loren Tate Mitchell, pastor of New Providence, said, “Education has been foundational in the life of New Providence from its earliest days, being one of the first congregations to hold Sunday school in North America, as well as housing the New Providence Academy in the 1800s. It seems only natural that we continue in our mission of serving God and the community by getting more books in the hands of children to inspire a love of reading and imagination. We are delighted to be an affiliate of this exceptional program.”
Since its 1995 launch in Sevier County, Tenn., the DPIL has become the preeminent early childhood book-gifting program in the world. The Dollywood Foundation has gifted more than 200 million books to children in the United States, Canada, United Kingdom, Australia, and the Republic of Ireland. Funding is shared by The Dollywood Foundation and its local partners. The program’s impact has been widely researched and results demonstrate its positive impact on early childhood development and literacy skills, said a program spokesperson.
For more information or to register, visit imaginationlibrary. com or call the church office at (540) 3485881.
