Queens affiliate launches Dolly Parton Imagination Library program

A new literacy program in Queens County is already drawing strong interest from local families.

The Queens affiliate of Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library launched about two weeks ago and has already registered around 150 children.

The program mails free, age-appropriate books every month to children under the age of five. Families do not pay to take part, and if there is more than one eligible child in a home, each child gets their own book package.

Joanne Veinotte, co-coordinator of the Queens affiliate, says the goal is to make books more accessible for young children across the county.

“The earlier you can get books into the hands of kids is a really big indicator of how their educational outcomes will be with literacy,” Veinotte said.

The program runs through the Dolly Parton Foundation, which handles much of the administration, including book selection, mailing and donation receipts. Local affiliates are responsible for raising money to cover the cost of books in their area.

Veinotte says the Queens affiliate has received early support from the J and W Murphy Foundation and White Point Beach Resort, but more donations are needed to expand the program.

“More money means more kids,” Veinotte said.

Donations can be made through the Imagination Library website by selecting the Queens affiliate. Businesses can also sponsor books for a specific month and include a short message on the book labels sent to families.

The goal of the program is to register about 65 percent of children under five in the service area.

However, she says organizers hope to eventually reach every eligible child in Queens County.

Families can register online through the Imagination Library website or through the Queens affiliate’s Facebook page. Paper registration forms are also available at local libraries and other community locations in North and South Queens.