“Many people know and love Imagination Library,” Shay said. “But very few people know that our local United Way provides the program in Koochiching County.”
Country music icon Dolly Parton launched Imagination Library in 1995 in her hometown in Tennessee to foster a love of reading among children and their families. The program mails a free book each month to a child under the age of five, ensuring every child as access to reading resources in their home regardless of their family’s income.
The program expanded as a nationwide initiative in 2000, relying on local affiliates to enroll children, pay for the books and postage, and promote the program. UWNEMN brought the program to Koochiching County in 2009. Nearly 52,000 Imagination Library books have been delivered to local children since that time.
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Babies grow at amazing rates, and so do their brains, says Koochiching County Public Health nurse Debra Larson RN, PHN, CLC.
“(Babies) are born with about 100 billion neurons that receive, process, and transmit information, and babies are trying to make sense of this world,” she said. “Parents reading and talking trigger blossoms in the child’s mind and helps them connect the billion stars (neurons) in the sky (brain) through words by reading, talking, singing songs and play.”
Larson feels so strongly about the importance of early literacy, she has made an effort to enroll local children in the Imagination Library program as soon as they are born. Local children not enrolled at birth are commonly enrolled later during early childhood screening.
Being present with families engaging in reading books with their children has been “the greatest pleasure” of Larson’s career as a Nurse Family Home Visitor in Koochiching County.
“Stories around a campfire and bedtime stories were a big part of life growing up,” she said. “Going to the library with my mother as a young child and watching my dad go to the library to figure out how to build something laid down a strong future for me.
We need to pass on that blessing of reading and stories to our next generations.”
Because of Larson’s efforts and those of groups like the Rotary Club of International Falls’ Love of Reading Early (LORE) committee, Imagination Library enrollment in International Falls has “matched or exceeded the birth rate every year since we started,” according to LORE Chairperson Jeff Hardwig.
The Rotary Club of International Falls began focusing heavily on promoting early literacy in 2015 after gathering stakeholders to discuss the importance of reading on childhood development and ways to increase early literacy in the community. Their findings?
Early intervention is critical. According to the American Academy of Pediatrics, reading proficiency by the end of the third grade is the most important predictor of high school graduation and career success.
“This is not an experiment,” said Hardwig, a psychologist by background. “We are following science and what science says is best practice.”
LORE’s work to promote a “literature rich environment” for local children has included Reach Out and Read which gives free books to children at checkups, erecting free libraries specifically for children throughout the community, and championing UWNEMN’s Imagination Library program.
“It’s a consistent steady push to read to kids early,” Hardwig said.
Imagination Library plays a pivotal role in this work.
“It’s a good program, and the Rotary supports United Way and gives to United Way knowing (the organization) gives a lot of money to our county for these books,” he said. “…It’s a great investment.”
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It costs $35 to sponsor a child to receive Imagination Library books for one year, and Shay said UWNEMN is dedicated to raising the funds to purchase and mail these books year after year.
“Our local families love the program, and so do we,” Shay said. “One of our main focus areas is helping children succeed, and this program is proven to do just that.”
UWNEMN leadership is keen on removing barriers to accessing books like cost and travel, Shay said, which makes Imagination Library a perfect fit. In addition, leadership appreciates the program is open to any child regardless of family income.
“The only thing you have to do to qualify for this program is have a child under the age of five and live in our service area,” Shay said.
The program is provided free of charge to Koochiching County and Lake of the Woods County families thanks to the support of UWNEMN donors. UWNEMN will be collecting donations to support Imagination Library on Giving Tuesday – a global day of giving following Black Friday, Small Business Saturday, and Cyber Monday – on November 30th.
Donations to support UWNEMN’s Imagination Library program can be made at www.unitedwaynemn.org/give or mailed to 608 East Drive, Chisholm, MN 55719.