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LA GRANGE — After a successful oneyear pilot program providing free books to children, the Fayette Electric Cooperative board is expanding a partnership with Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library, officials said.
In an effort to improve area literacy, books will now also be available to children living in ZIP codes 78941, 78956, 78963, 78962 and 78959.
According to a release, each month the Imagination Library will provide an age-appropriate book for each registered child, free to the family. Children from birth to age 5 will receive a high-quality book monthly delivered directly to their home.
Families do not have to be members of the cooperative to participate.
Improving early childhood literacy with the Imagination Library creates opportunities for children to thrive and succeed in school, helping their communities grow and prosper, officials said.
“We are so excited that this program is now available to more children,” said cooperative Marketing and Training Coordinator Tracy Denton. “The National Commission on Reading reports, ‘The single most significant factor influencing a child’s early educational success is an introduction to books and being read to at home prior to beginning school.’ Our hope is to prepare children before they enter school so they can become successful students and, in turn, successful adults.”
Parents can register their children by visiting fayette.coop/dolly-partons-imagination- library. For questions about enrollment, contact Denton at 979-968-3181 or at [email protected].
Since launching in 1995, Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library has become the preeminent early childhood book-gifting program in the world, organizers said.
The flagship program of the nonprofit has given nearly 200 million free books in the United States, Canada, United Kingdom, Australia and The Republic of Ireland.
Parton, a singer, entertainer and activist, envisioned creating a lifelong love of reading and inspiring children to dream more, learn more, care more and be more, organizers said.
Research suggests the program has created positive increases in key early childhood literacy metrics. Penguin Random House is the exclusive publisher for Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library.
For more, visit imaginationlibrary.com. In 2022, the co-op’s Charitable Fund was created with the help of the Fayette Community Foundation.
Donations received through this fund go straight to the Imagination Library program.
Supporters can make a tax-deductible donation by visiting the Fayette Community Foundation’s website at faycofoundation.com/donors.
