Erie County is giving Read to Succeed Buffalo $105,000 to relaunch the Dolly Parton Imagination Library.
Through the program, free age-appropriate books are sent in the mail straight to children's homes until they turn 5 years old.
“Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library complements the continuum of RTSB programs that have delivered intentional instruction and exposure to developmentally appropriate, literacy-rich environments for children from birth through 3rd grade; wherever they are including child care, preschool and the early elementary grades across Buffalo,” said RTSB Executive Director Anne Ryan. “We applaud the county executive for recognizing how important it is to expose children, right from birth to written language and high-quality books in the home.”
Residents in 28 Erie County zip codes are eligible to sign up.
“Reading is essential to a successful, healthy life and we need to do all we can to instill a love of reading in the young people in our lives,” said Erie County Executive Mark C. Poloncarz. “By working with partners such as Read to Succeed Buffalo we are able to bring the Imagination Library to Erie County, expanding our literacy reach and providing quality books to eager young minds.”
The Imagination Library previously was available for county residents until 2018.