SAN ANTONIO – In the wake of country music queen Dolly Parton’s death, many are remembering the star for more than her music, including her heart for others.
Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library is a nonprofit promoting early childhood literacy, providing a free book a month for children from birth to age 5. It began in East Tennessee and has since spread across the U.S. and beyond, including in San Antonio.
The Imagination Library of San Antonio operates as a volunteer-run nonprofit that raises funds locally through community donations and partnerships, with the Texas State Library now covering 50% of book costs through a state grant.
The Imagination Library of San Antonio currently serves children in 26 ZIP codes.
“A lot of our growth is based in areas that are book deserts, areas which have low attainment score in reading when children enter the elementary years,” Volpe said. “Places where we know that there’s a lot of hardships that make literacy hard to move the needle on.”
So far, the chapter has provided 11,000 books to 1,700 kids since March 2025.
Volpe said she is saddened to learn of Parton’s death but said her legacy lives on.
“She leaves behind not just her books and her music and just an incredible spirit, but this opportunity that at the local level, we can create community and rally around children and literacy.”
Volpe said their registration link is currently having issues but asks people to check the website in the coming days.
