Dolly Parton's Imagination Library/Dryden Affiliate Facebook page
Over 70 children in the City of Dryden will receive a new free book in the mail every month until they turn five years old, thanks to Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library.
“We had available funding for 73 children (up to 5 years old) and by six that night they were filled (in less than a day),” said Organizer of the Dryden affiliate program Joanna Ripley, who’s been working with the Dryden Public Library to get the program off the ground. “This is a sponsor based program and although it is free to families and children, we’re always seeking donations so that we’re able to open up more spots for more children.”
The Moffat Family Fund came through with a 17 hundred dollar grant and over 2 hundred dollars in donations have been received so far.
“Dingwall Ford Dryden has also said they would come up with some sort of promotion as far as donating some money back to the program to sponsor some children as well, I’ve submitted a grant to Rotary- they’ve contributed 25 hundred dollars and Domtar just awarded us 750 dollars.”
With COVID-19 closing child care centres and schools off and on over the last year, Ripley says her two kids have benefited from the program and the launch couldn’t have come at a better time.
“We’re spending more unstructured time in our homes, more than ever. Being able to read to our kids is just one more step to help with early literacy and to increase bonding time that we get to spend with our children.”
It costs about 43 dollars per child for one year of the program and to donate you can click shop now on Dryden’s Imagination Library Facebook Page.
Country music star Dolly Parton started the Imagination Library program in 1995 and more than 150 million books have been delivered to children across five different countries.
