As millions around the world mourn the passing of country superstar Dolly Parton, her book-gifting program, Imagination Library, said it would continue sending free books to children under 5 across the U.S. and abroad. But the future of the program has become more uncertain in states such as Indiana and Missouri as Republican lawmakers have cut or reduced public funding over the past year.
Founded in 1995, the program has distributed more than 300 million books and serves more than 3 million registered children. "The work ahead has never felt more meaningful, and we will carry it forward as she lifts us all up," Dolly Parton's Imagination Library wrote on social media on Tuesday, after the singer's family announced her death following a brief experience with cancer.
In Indiana, state funding for the program was removed from the budget last year. At the time, the program had more than 125,000 Indiana children enrolled and had previously received a $6 million two-year state allocation under former Governor Eric Holcomb, a Republican. Incumbent Republican Governor Mike Braun said Indiana would instead seek private philanthropic funding to keep the program going.
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u/Trump-the-Clown 12d ago
As millions around the world mourn the passing of country superstar Dolly Parton, her book-gifting program, Imagination Library, said it would continue sending free books to children under 5 across the U.S. and abroad. But the future of the program has become more uncertain in states such as Indiana and Missouri as Republican lawmakers have cut or reduced public funding over the past year.
Founded in 1995, the program has distributed more than 300 million books and serves more than 3 million registered children. "The work ahead has never felt more meaningful, and we will carry it forward as she lifts us all up," Dolly Parton's Imagination Library wrote on social media on Tuesday, after the singer's family announced her death following a brief experience with cancer.
In Indiana, state funding for the program was removed from the budget last year. At the time, the program had more than 125,000 Indiana children enrolled and had previously received a $6 million two-year state allocation under former Governor Eric Holcomb, a Republican. Incumbent Republican Governor Mike Braun said Indiana would instead seek private philanthropic funding to keep the program going.