Cedar Rapids Public Library Foundation celebrates Dolly Parton’s birthday, literacy impact with Imagination Library

CEDAR RAPIDS — As Dolly Parton turns 78 this week, the Cedar Rapids Public Library Foundation will be celebrating some numbers exponentially larger than the number of candles on her cake.

Since becoming a local affiliate of the country singer-songwriter’s Imagination Library in 2018, the Cedar Rapids Public Library Foundation has distributed more than 360,000 books to almost 12,000 children — an average of about 30 books per child adding up to over 60,000 books each year in Cedar Rapids.

To celebrate, the library will host its second annual birthday party for Parton while meeting the families that the program has impacted over the last six years. The rekindling of joy around a love for the popular artist and for reading celebrates the impacts of the program that has served children across the country and the English-speaking world since 1995.

“It was really nice to be able to meet some of those families and hear from the children that received the books or have graduated from the program,” said Jess Netolicky, development associate for the Cedar Rapids Public Library Foundation. “We’re really proud of how many children we’ve served in those six years.”

As an affiliate of Imagination Library, the Cedar Rapids Public Library Foundation sends out about 5,400 books each month to children in Cedar Rapids. The foundation covers the cost of books and postage, relying on enrollment partners to build awareness around the program and enroll families.

But the impact, for many, is something beyond words.

Children who grow up with books in their home at an early age achieve three more years of education than those who do not, Netolicky said. By increasing access, even families with transportation or financial barriers to books can find a path to giving their children a lifelong love for literature and reading while building an important developmental bond between children and their parents or guardians.

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Through the annual birthday celebration, the foundation can see the impacts of the program up close with enrolled families, since the program does not permit direct contact with them.

Families are eligible to enroll their children starting at birth. Children receive one book each month until age 5, when they receive their final book, “Lookout Kindergarten, Here I Come!” by Nancy Carlton.

“The biggest comment we hear is that children and families are developing this love of reading at an early age,” Netolicky said. “We know there are so many benefits of reading to children when they’re young, even before they can comprehend everything they’re reading.”

The average retail price of a children’s book is $13. The Dollywood Foundation, which manages Imagination Library, chooses book selections and reduces the cost to about $2.20 per book with postage thanks to its massive buying power.

“It really is a significant cost,” Netolicky said. “In addition to relying on community partners, we rely on donors to support it.”

In addition to serving as an Imagination Library affiliate, the foundation supports well-rounded programming including its preschool outreach program since 1990, which provides resources and story times to students in preschools, as well as library staff development supports and an online resource of newspapers and magazines from across the world.

To support the program, visit crlibrary.org/children/imagination-library.

To wear your support for the Cedar Rapids Public Library Foundation on your sleeve, choose from a selection of custom shirts by Raygun that benefit the foundation, available online.

Comments: Features reporter Elijah Decious can be reached at (319) 398-8340 or elijah.decious@thegazette.com.