BookGive Honors Literacy Champion, Dolly Parton
In an earlier blog, we told you why BookGive believes that having books at home matters. We’re not the only ones who think so. Studies have found that growing up with a home library boosts adult literacy.
As Denver’s book charity, sharing and donating books with our community is what we do, so we love learning about other people who care as much about reading as we do. We think of those people as “literacy champions” because their mission, like ours, is to help spread the love of books.
You probably already know one of our favorite literacy champions, Dolly Parton, but you might know her better as a famous singer. Did you know Dolly Parton loves reading as much as she loves music? Way back in 1995, she launched Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library for the children growing up in her home county in East Tennessee.
Dolly Parton knows how important reading is. She’s always believed that not being able to read kept her own father from accomplishing his goals in life. Inspired by her love for her father, she wanted to make sure that all children have an opportunity that he didn’t have, and that a lot of us take for granted: the chance to learn to read.
What started as a local program has turned into an organization that serves families in five countries. We at BookGive are also starting with service to our local community first, but who knows? We might follow in Dolly Parton’s footsteps someday.
In a letter to the public, Dolly Parton said, “Inspiring kids to love to read became my mission. In the beginning, my hope was simply to inspire the children in my home county but here we are today with a worldwide program that gives a book a month to well over one million children.”
In the 25 years it’s existed, her organization has given away over 133 million books to kids all over the world. As a comparison, at any given time the BookGive Service Station might hold up to 10,000 books. Could we aspire to Dolly Parton’s accomplishments? That’s a lot of books!
And now, in this peculiar moment in time, Dolly is doing even more to help out. On April 2nd, she started a 10-week video series, “Goodnight with Dolly.” Each Thursday (through June 4th), she’ll delight viewers on her YouTube channel with a charming reading of one of her favorite children’s books.
“This is something I have been wanting to do for quite a while, but the timing never felt quite right,” she said. “I think it is pretty clear that now is the time to share a story and to share some love.”
The Imagination Library website said that “Dolly hopes this series of stories will provide comfort and reassurance to coping kids and families during the shelter-in-place mandates.” Yes, a bedtime story with Dolly Parton would certainly be a welcomed way to end the day. Thank you, Dolly!
It’s easy to see why everybody loves Dolly Parton. Because of her kindness, her love of reading, and her great generosity, BookGive salutes Dolly Parton as a true literacy champion.
This blog post contributed by BookGive volunteer writer, Leah Welborn. Click here to join our volunteer writing team.
