The Allen County Public Library Foundation is pleased to announce a $25,000 funding match to support the group’s campaign to bring Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library to the children of Allen County as part of its commitment to promoting literacy and supporting early childhood education. The fundraising campaign launched in June of this year with a goal of raising $100,000. It has currently raised $37,000.
“We are incredibly excited to launch this $25,000 match opportunity,” said ACPL Foundation Board Secretary Susan Johnson. “The Imagination Library has a profound impact on early literacy and a child's love for reading. With this matching gift, we hope to inspire our community to come together and help us achieve our $100,000 goal.”
With the match in place, every dollar donated to Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library campaign will be matched dollar-for-dollar up to $25,000. This generous match, made possible by the Foundation’s dedicated supporters, aims to double the impact of every contribution and accelerate the program's reach within the community.
The funds raised through this campaign will go directly towards launching Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library within Allen County. Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library is an initiative founded by singer-songwriter Dolly Parton. Its mission is simple yet powerful: to foster a love for reading and learning in children. Parents/caregivers may choose to enroll their children who will receive free, age-appropriate, high quality books from birth to age five, mailed to their homes each month. 85 out of 92 Indiana counties currently host the program.
Since the announcement of the ACPL’s intention to host the program in partnership with the ACPL Foundation, the community has shown widespread support. According to the Imagination Library of Indiana, more than 1400 Allen County children have already joined a list awaiting the launch of the program.
“Nearly every day, a patron or community leader stops me to share their excitement about the Imagination Library. It really is something everyone wants to see happen for our community,” said ACPL Executive Director Susan P. Baier. “So many people have already given generously and I believe this match will be the extra incentive that moves people to dig a little deeper and push us over the top!”
Fundraising will continue until the goal is met. The Library hopes to launch in early 2025 if the goal is achieved. The community is invited to make donations at acpl.info/imaginationlibrary or by visiting any ACPL branch.
About the Allen County Public Library
The Allen County Public Library (ACPL) has fostered lifelong learning and discovery in northeast Indiana for more than 125 years. The ACPL consists of fourteen branches throughout Allen County, serving more than one million visitors per year. The ACPL’s collection includes more than 2.7 million items, with a circulation total of 4.2 million items borrowed annually. It also houses The Genealogy Center, the nation’s largest public genealogy research center, and The Rolland Center for Lincoln Research, consisting of more than 30,000 artifacts related to President Abraham Lincoln.
About the ACPL Foundation
The ACPL Foundation is a separate legal entity formed for the purpose of enhancing and expanding library programs and services. Its primary function is to secure financial and in-kind donations for programs, services, and capital projects. The ACPL Foundation offers donors a familiar and reliable vehicle for tax-deductible contributions in support of the Allen County Public Library.
About Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library
Since launching in 1995, Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library has become the preeminent early childhood book gifting program in the world. The flagship program of The Dollywood Foundation, a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization, has gifted over 250 million free books in the United States, Canada, United Kingdom, Australia, and The Republic of Ireland. This is achieved through funding shared by The Dollywood Foundation and Local Program Partners. The Imagination Library mails more than 3 million high-quality, age-appropriate books each month to enrolled children from birth to age five. Dolly envisioned creating a lifelong love of reading and inspiring children to Dream More, Learn More, Care More, and Be More®.
The program has been widely researched and results demonstrate the positive impact on early childhood development and literacy skills. Penguin Random House is the exclusive publisher for Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library.
For more information, please visit imaginationlibrary.com.
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