Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library of Ohio
Exciting news for parents and children of Butler County! Children from birth to age 5 can now be enrolled in the Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library of Ohio, and receive a free book in the mail once a month.
Enroll your child here.
This service is made possible by Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library of Ohio , Butler County United Way and the generosity of local donors and is facilitated through a partnership of MidPointe Library System and Lane Libraries.
A brief history of Women Enriching Lives and their dedication to children in the area
Women Enriching Lives has been a premier fundraising organization and driving force in growing the Dolly Parton Imagination Library in Butler County.
The committee was formed in 2009 as part of the Middletown Area United Way. At that time the name of this women’s group was Women Living United (WLU). After hearing several presentations from area non-profit organizations, the committee selected the local Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library Chapter managed by the Middletown Community Foundation. The Chapter at that time only enrolled eligible pre-school children living in the Middletown City School District. Middletown was selected because children from this district had one of the lowest performance scores in literacy on the Kindergarten Assessment in the State. There was a 5–year projection before the surrounding school districts of Edgewood, Madison and Monroe could become part of the program. The WLU assumed the responsibility of raising $50,000 to add the additional districts. In 2013, WLU moved its affiliation to the Middletown Community Foundation and became known as Women Enriching Lives.
To date, Women Enriching Lives has raised nearly $400,000 to grow and support the Dolly Parton Imagination Library for local children. The first mailing of Imagination Library books was in January 2009 to the 316 children enrolled in the program. That number 10 years later grew to over 4,000 children served each month. In the program’s 10 years of existence locally, over 10,000 children have benefited from the group’s dedication and generosity.
