Geneseo Public Library District

09/02/2026

It has been one week since the passing of beloved Dolly Parton. While we still feel the hole she left in this world, our community has rallied to keep her legacy alive through the Imagination Library.

As of today, we have raised just over $𝟭𝟴,𝟱𝟬𝟬 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗰𝗼𝘂𝗻𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 to help continue putting books into the hands of children here in Washington State. We are grateful to everyone who has donated, liked, shared, or helped spread the word about our work!

If you want to help continue Dolly’s legacy here in Washington, donate today!

https://www.imaginationlibrarywashington.org/donate

09/02/2026

If you don't think Dolly Parton was kind, READ THIS! Dolly Parton's Imagination Library

Before the books, before the Imagination Library — there was a room full of thirteen-year-olds.

The Dollywood Foundation had done the research and found that seventh and eighth grade were the two years when kids quietly made up their minds about whether they'd finish school. More than a third of Sevier County students weren't graduating.

So in the late '80s, Dolly Parton had every seventh and eighth grader in the county bused to the theater at Dollywood, and walked out on stage herself.

She told them to pick a Buddy. If you don't have one, she said, I'll find you one.

Then came the deal: she would personally hand each of them $500 the day they graduated high school. But your Buddy had to graduate too. One of you quits, neither of you gets paid.

They signed notarized contracts — to each other, and to Dolly personally. To finish school. To help each other when one of them was struggling. And to write to Dolly Parton at Dollywood if they hit a problem they couldn't solve.

Suddenly dropping out wasn't just your decision anymore. It cost your friend something.

The first class collected their checks in the spring of 1992. For those two classes, the dropout rate fell from 35% to 6%.

She could have written a check to the school board and gone back to Nashville. Instead she made a bunch of teenagers responsible for each other.

That was always the trick with her. She didn't hand people things. She handed people to each other.

Rest easy, Dolly 🕊️

09/02/2026

Dolly truly was an amazing woman! So kind! She is sorely missed.

09/02/2026

I wonder how many of these readers were encouraged and influenced by Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library? 🎵👱‍♀️📖

09/02/2026

Don't forget the Geneseo Public Library District partners with Dolly Parton's Imagination Library. If you live in Henry county Illinois and have a child under the age of 5 years, send your child's name, date of birth, address and your phone number to '[email protected]" and she'll get you registered. We also have coloring pages of butterflies that you can bring back after they're colored and we're hanging them up as a memorial to Dolly.

Along with so many of you, we're mourning Dolly Parton's passing. She leaves behind an immense and beautiful legacy, part of which includes her commitment to early literacy. Since founding Imagination Library in Sevierville in 1995, she has had a lasting impact on the children of East Tennessee.

In 2001, Dolly said, "My dream has been for every child to have a library of books that their parents can read to them from, from the time they are born until they start school. The Imagination Library was designed to help children dream more, learn more, care more, be more and by golly, it's really working."

Dolly was right; by golly, it's really working. Imagination Library started in Washington County in 2005, and since then, kids here have received 1,115,868 books. In just 2025-2026 alone, 61,880 books were sent to Washington County families. Because of Dolly's vision, 81% of Washington County's kids under 5 get a free book every month.

We are forever grateful to Dolly Parton for her vision, wisdom, and "cup of ambition" to gift East Tennessee kids with books. She will continue to have a lasting impact on the children of our region, as they learn to dream, care, and be more.

09/02/2026

We launched the Storybook Trail in partnership with Salem Parks & Recreation in 2022. Our friends at the Parks Department were at the Trail today, getting our Storybook Kiosks ready for a new story launch and sent us this photo of a memorial for Dolly Parton at the entrance of the Storybook Trail. 🦋🫶🎀

Dolly's legacy will continue through every book we mail out monthly to children enrolled in the Columbiana County Imagination Library.

👀Stay tuned for more information on our next Storybook Trail adventure. 📚🌳

🌞🧡💙

09/02/2026

09/02/2026

Love Your Library Month has begun! Donations received in September will be part of a $280,000 prorated match by the Jack Buncher foundation and NiSource Foundation of Columbia Gas. That means your donation will be even BIGGER if you give now. Go to www.mtlebanonlibrary.org/460/Love-Your-Library