MARC JACOBS
Hutch Post
Dolly Parton is being remembered not only as a country music legend, but also as a champion for childhood literacy.
Parton died Tuesday at the age of 80.
Her Imagination Library grew from a small program in her native Sevier County, Tennessee, into an international effort providing free books to children. Parton launched the nonprofit in 1995 in honor of her father, who left school to work on the family farm and struggled to read.
The Pratt Library played a significant role in the program’s expansion, becoming the first community outside Tennessee to distribute Imagination Library books.
The program became available statewide in Kansas in 2023 through a partnership involving the Imagination Library, and the State of Kansas.
The United Way of Reno County is the program’s local affiliate. It provides any child younger than 5 living in Reno County with one free, age-appropriate book delivered to their home every month, regardless of family income. A child enrolled at birth can build a home library of up to 60 books by their fifth birthday.
United Way of Reno County said it is deeply saddened by Parton’s passing, remembering her for both her musical gifts and charitable generosity.
Click here to see United Way of Reno County's Facebook post.
The organization said it is honored to continue delivering books to Reno County children with the support of local donors, helping inspire the same lifelong love of reading that Parton promoted.
The program serves families throughout Hutchinson, Nickerson, Haven, Buhler, Pretty Prairie and other Reno County communities.
Parton’s Imagination Library now operates across the United States, Canada, Australia, the United Kingdom and Ireland. The program has reached millions of children since it began more than three decades ago.