HELENA — Montana children age 0 to 5 are now able to receive a free book each month thanks to Dolly Parton’s “Imagination Library” and a State of Montana partnership. The announcement was made by Montana’s First Lady Susan Gianforte and multi-award-winning singer-songwriter herself.
“I’m so excited to be launching my Imagination Library statewide in Montana!” said Parton in a message announcing . “I want to send my very special thanks to First Lady Susan Gianforte for her partnership in making this amazing gift available to children and families across the state.”
The Imagination Libary of Montana is made possible thanks to the initiatives of Montana’s first lady in conjunction with Parton’s Imagination Library. As first lady, Gianforte has been working to expand literacy to empower more Montana children.
“Literacy is critical for our kids and their development. When parents read to their kids or when a child reads, it engages them, it fires their imagination, and sparks their curiosity,” Gianforte said in a press release. “I’m proud of the partnership we’ve developed with Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library and local organizations throughout Montana. Working together, we’ll make sure all our youngest kids have access to reading resources so they can dream, grow, and reach their full potential.”
Any child ages 0 to 5 can be registered by their guardian at imaginationlibrary.com. Currently, the Imagination Library mails more than 2 million high-quality, age-appropriate books each month to enrolled children with the help of partner agencies.
The partnership will assist programs already in place while also expanding programs statewide to every zip code in all of Montana’s 56 counties.
Patron’s Imagination Library was launched in 1995 through the Dollywood Foundation, a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization. In the nearly three decades of existence, the program has gifted over 200 million free books in the United States, Canada, United Kingdom, Australia, and The Republic of Ireland.