The Raccoon Valley Rural Electric Cooperative was a major contributor to the Dolly Parton Imagination Library, helping to provide free books to children in Carroll County from infancy to age five.

Last November, Raccoon Valley donated $2,500 and generated two matching gifts totaling $7,500.

Raccoon Valley leaders believe so strongly in the Imagination Library that they recently hosted a Carroll Chamber of Commerce coffee and used the opportunity to promote the reading program. World-famous entertainer Dolly was on hand – in the form of a life-size figure – and Cindy Duhrkopf, area manager for Partnership 4 Families, spoke about the program.

Duhrkopf says our local sponsor, Community Health Foundation, and Partnership 4 Families the Early Childhood Iowa Area are currently enrolling children in Audubon, Carroll, Greene and Guthrie counties.

Families can check the Imagination Library website (www.imaginationlibrary.com) to see if it is available in their area.

Parton’s Dollywood Foundation founded her Imagination Library in 1995 to serve the children of her home county in eastern Tennessee.

The program’s website states: “Dolly’s vision was to foster a love of reading among her district’s preschool children and their families. The new program gave each child a specially selected book each month. By sending high-quality, age-appropriate books directly to their homes, Dolly wanted children to get excited about books and feel the magic that books can create. Additionally, she was able to ensure that every child had books, regardless of their family’s income.”

Over the past nearly 30 years, Imagination Library has expanded nationally, expanding to Canada, the United Kingdom and Australia.

The website states: “The first book order in 1995 was just over 1,700. Today, Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library ships more than 1 million books a month to children around the world, inspiring them to dream more, learn more, care more, and be more.”

The Imagination Library began enrolling children in Carroll County in November 2022.

Duhrkopf reports: “In just two years, we enrolled 618 children, and 168 completed the program at the age of five. There are 1,278 children ages 0 to 5 in Carroll County, according to census data. We currently have 48 percent of possible children registered. The Dollywood Foundation estimates the program will enroll 65 percent of children in an enrollment area.”

According to Duhrkopf, local enrollment has exceeded expectations.

“We didn’t expect to reach this milestone of nearly 50 percent enrollment in two years,” she says. “All of this was achieved through our network of early childhood partners who helped spread the word, including through word of mouth from one family talking to another family.”

Explaining Raccoon Valley’s support of the Imagination Library and encouraging others to get involved, Raccoon Valley CEO Jim Gossett told the Times Herald: “Educating a child to read is one of the most important things we do as a community and as families can do.” The board of Raccoon Valley Electric deemed the Dolly Parton Imagination Library program sufficient to make a significant donation and arranged for our power provider, Basin Electric Power Cooperative, donated the same amount.”

Gossett says the donation is good for the Imagination Library and, most importantly, good for the children of Carroll County.

Gossett says he has four grandchildren in Minnesota who have all received books through the program.

“Another benefit is that they are age-appropriate books and (kids) get them every month. It’s a wonderful program,” he says.

The Imagination Library website states: “According to the Dollywood Foundation, 90 percent of a child’s brain is developed by the age of five, making this period crucial to their development and can be boosted by reading books.” The Foundation points out that daily lectures by parents or carers provide the best way to prepare their child for school and that literacy is an important social determinant of health and economic impact in the long term.

Duhrkopf says of the need for financial support to ensure the future success of the program locally: “Although we have received some great donations, enrollment has reached a point that exceeds donations. Currently we can only offer the program for the next six months unless we secure additional funding. We have received significant support in the past year from Raccoon Valley Electric Cooperative, Westside State Bank, Timmerman Foundation, Partnerships 4 Families and a few other smaller donations, but we note that funding for this program exceeds $33,000 each year will cost if registration were to reach 100 percent of eligible children.”

A flyer handed out by Raccoon Valley at Chamber Coffee states: “The cost of the books is extremely low! Only $2.10 per month per child. That’s $25.20 per year and $125 for a child enrolled from birth to age five.”

Those wishing to support the Imagination Library can send checks to Our Community Health Foundation, 2002 State St., Suite 1, Guthrie Center, IA 50115 and specify Carroll, Audubon, Greene or Guthrie County. Donations can also be accepted online at www.imaginationlibrary.com, with the donation going to Carroll County. If groups are interested in learning more, they can contact Partnerships 4 Families Area Manager Cindy Duhrkopf at [email protected].