Kids younger than five living in Wagoner County can now get a free book in the mail each month thanks to Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library.

The goal of the program is to have kids be around books and get excited about reading, so when they start Kindergarten, reading books is just part of life.

WHAT IS THE IMAGINATION LIBRARY?

The Imagination Library was started by Dolly Parton in 1995 with the goal of giving free books to children living in Sevier County, Tennessee, where she is from.

Now, the program includes dozens of states and five countries and gives out more than two million free books to children each month.

The books are given to children who sign up in eligible areas who are between the ages of zero and five.

HOW DID THE IMAGINATION LIBRARY COME TO OKLAHOMA?

Sen. John Haste (R-Broken Arrow) was instrumental in getting legislation passed to bring the program to Oklahoma.

The law, authored by Haste, was signed in 2020 to create a revolving fund and place the administration of the program under the State Department of Education.

The State Department of Education also invested $2.5 million of federal pandemic relief funds into the program.

WHO IS IN CHARGE OF THE WAGONER COUNTY PROGRAM?

Broken Arrow Neighbors is the group responsible for Wagoner County.

"We offer here at Broken Arrow Neighbors, not only a food pantry, financial assistance, but again that third pillar of making sure that we're empowering the future of our clients,” said Megan Quickle, the Executive Director of Broken Arrow Neighbors.

"This not only gets people early access to books and stuff like that from before school, but give them a life-long love of reading,” said Trevor Myers, the Community and Operations Manager of Broken Arrow Neighbors.

WHY IS THIS IMPORTANT TO LAWMAKERS?

Haste says this gives kids the chance to be around books before they start school.

"Families can read the books together, it also helps children understand about books,” said Haste. “The goal being, when they get to Pre-K to Kindergarten, it will help with their reading skills, which will translate to a greater chance of doing better in school."

He says it can also make sure children are staying on the right path to success.

"Knowing that something that we can start right at the beginning can have everlasting impacts for the child for the rest of their life,” said Haste. “If we've got them on the right path once they get to school, that means the opportunities they will have in the future will be that much greater."

DO I QUALIFY?

There is no income requirement to take part in this program.

You can sign children up in eligible areas starting when they are born and they will receive a book a month until they turn five.

You can check availability on the website using your Zip Code.

WHAT IF I HAVE A FOSTER KID?

Haste says the Imagination Library makes it easy to change addresses and make sure the books continue to show up.

"We have a lot of foster children in Oklahoma,” said Haste. “The Dollywood Foundation is really great at working with getting the books following the child. So if they move from one home to another, the books will still keep coming."

WHERE CAN I FIND MORE INFORMATION?

The Imagination Library website has more information and is where you can sign up: https://imaginationlibrary.com/

Information on Oklahoma chapters can be found here: https://oklahoma.gov/education/services/standards-learning/imagination-library.html