A program that brings books to young children in Eugene is seeking help to grow. As KLCC’s Rachael McDonald reports, the Imagination Library serves 4,000 kids in the community thanks to local contributions.
The Imagination Library was started by country music star Dolly Parton in 1995. It works this way: children receive a free book each month from birth to age five. Nancy Meyer is a board member of Imagination Library Eugene. She says research finds a children’s’ brains develop more rapidly at this stage than at any time later in life. Meyer says she understands it can be hard for parents to find time to read, but…
“It’s hard not to read to a toddler who’s following you around with a new book. So, I think it encourages the entire family to read and I think family members become more easily, comfortably engaged in future educational pursuits.”
Meyer says the goal is to have every child in Eugene age 0 to 5 enrolled in the Imagination Library. There’s one starting in Springfield too. Rural communities in Oregon can receive grant funds to help pay for the program. Myer says all the money to fund the local chapters is raised locally.
The Eugene Public Library Foundation is holding a fundraiser for the Imagination Library Thursday (April 5th) from 11:45 a.m. to 1 p.m. at Valley River Inn in Eugene.
