Dolly Parton, the Queen of Country, has died at the age of 80. While many will remember her for her music career, her legacy includes a personal mission inspired by her father: the Imagination Library, a free children's reading programme that has gifted more than 332 million books to children around the world since 1995.
Parton grew up in the Smoky Mountains of East Tennessee, one of 12 children to Robert Lee (known as Lee) and Avie Lee Parton. Her father, who couldn't read, became the inspiration for one of her greatest philanthropic efforts for a heartbreaking reason.
A father's struggle sparks a literacy mission
Speaking to Oprah Winfrey in 2020, Parton revealed that seeing her dad struggle with his own educational gaps sparked the idea for the literacy programme. "Daddy never had a chance to go to school, so he could never read or write," Parton said in 2020. "Daddy was a very smart man…but he was ashamed that he couldn't read or write. That bothered him. He felt like he couldn't learn after he was grown. I remember thinking, 'I need to do something.'"
Starting in her home county of Sevier County, Parton handed out free books to children in her own community. She eventually expanded the programme to reach children up to the age of five, regardless of background, so no children could miss out like her father had.
A worldwide programme with lasting impact
According to the tally on the reading programme's website, Parton has gifted 332,411,218 books to children around the world since 1995. Parton's dad told her shortly before he passed away that her "Imagination Library was probably the most important thing [she] had ever done," as per Library staff.
In a letter shared on the literacy programme's website, Parton added: "I can't tell you how much that meant to me because I created the Imagination Library as a tribute to my Daddy. He was the smartest man I have ever known, but I know in my heart his inability to read probably kept him from fulfilling all of his dreams." She continued: "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 [millions]."
Children enrolled in Parton's programme are nine times more likely to be read to four or more days per week. After receiving around 10 books, children in the scheme have shown broader vocabularies and can comprehend and communicate better than before.
Family and staff pay tribute
In their announcement of her death, Parton's family shared a statement emphasising her father's influence. "Dolly was a farmer, just like her daddy," Bryan Seaver, Parton's nephew and head of security, said in the video announcing her passing. "He farmed the soil; she farmed songs and happiness. Sadness lies with us, not with Dolly. Dolly has lived in the light and is in the arms of Jesus, surely met by Carl, her parents, and countless others who have watched her and longed for her to meet them in the heavens."
Representatives for the country music star issued a statement: "Our beloved Dolly Parton spent her life and career bringing joy, laughter, hope and integrity into everything she touched. Her unmatched generosity reached the lives of countless people whom she would never meet, yet she was always there to offer a helping hand. Whether it be the hundreds of millions of books donated through her invaluable Imagination Library or funding research that helped create a lifesaving vaccine used around the world, Dolly's unconditional love for all people was the guiding force for her lasting impact. After bravely facing a brief battle with cancer, Dolly departed her Earthly life today at the Vanderbilt-Ingram Cancer Centre surrounded by loved ones."
Staff at the Imagination Library took to social media to share a tribute. On X, staff said: "Our team, our local program partners, and every operational partner who helps make this program possible each month are heartbroken at the loss of our founder, Dolly Parton. The world grieves with us today. And yet we find ourselves just as certain about what comes next. For decades, Dolly & the team at The Dollywood Foundation — home of Dolly Parton's Imagination Library — worked to build something that would last for generations. So it will. The work ahead has never felt more meaningful, and we will carry it forward as she lifts us all up. Dolly, we will always love you."
In December 2007, the Imagination Library crossed the pond to the United Kingdom. The first Imagination Library book was gifted in the UK in 2008, and the programme has grown every year since, reaching more children each month. Seven million books have been gifted to UK children so far, staff at the Imagination Library say.
