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Dozens of babies in Belfast will receive 60 free books over five years from Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library
She’s one of the world’s biggest music stars, best known for a decades-long run of hits and a storied career on screen and stage – but, for dozens of babies in Belfast, Dolly Parton is about to become a major figure in their reading life.
Belfast City Council has teamed up with the star’s Dollywood Foundation to give free books to 75 babies registered at Belfast City Hall.
Each child will receive 60 books in total, one free book per month until they turn five.
Mark McBride’s baby daughter Maria is one of the 75 children receiving books from the programme.
Mark McBride and his family at Belfast City Hall
He attended a special event at Belfast City Hall on Thursday morning to mark its start.
He said his wife found out about the scheme online.
“We thought it would be a great opportunity for kids to get a head start,” he said.
“We got the application in as soon as possible.”
Mark said reading to their kids is normal for his family.
“We have an older child too, we’ve been reading with him all the time, he loves it and I’m sure she will too.”
The Imagination Library is a reading scheme first launched in Tennessee where Parton grew up and is celebrating its 30th anniversary this year.
Elected members agreed to fund the pilot extension of the Imagination Library in Belfast, following a notice of motion from Councillor Séamas De Faoite almost three years ago.
Nothing more important than ‘reading and bonding with your child’
Belfast Lord Mayor Tracy Kelly said she hoped the scheme could expand across Northern Ireland
Belfast’s Lord Mayor Tracy Kelly, who hosted the event, said she was delighted that the scheme had come to Belfast.
“There’s nothing more important than reading and bonding with your child,” Kelly said.
The DUP councillor said she would like to see the pilot “expanded right across Northern Ireland”.
Kelly added she cannot imagine that “any rate payer in Northern Ireland would be unhappy with children getting books when they’re getting registered in Belfast City Council”.
“I’m sure many parents in Northern Ireland have read to their children and do see the benefit of it.”
‘I’m a huge fan of Dolly’
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Could we see Dolly in Belfast some day?
For SDLP councillor Séamas De Faoite, pitching the idea was a no brainer.
“I’m a huge fan of Dolly anyway so I’ve seen the work she’s done,” he said.
He said he was “delighted” to finally reach this point after his motion in December 2022.
“Our vision is to make sure we try and extend this out to every child in Belfast,” he added.
“She brings a huge amount of joy in terms of all the work she does for charity and good causes.”
Could Dolly Parton come to Belfast?
“We’ve got to aim big and hopefully we might see Dolly here one day” – Megan Fletcher, regional director at The Dollywood Foundation
Megan Fletcher, regional director at The Dollywood Foundation, said they have been working in Northern Ireland since 2015 with “small community programmes”.
“We’ve got to aim big and hopefully we might see Dolly here one day, if we can go nationwide across the whole of Northern Ireland let’s try and make it happen”, she added.
“We are continuing to grow, we have a number of programmes across the Belfast area some in partnership with Hagan homes and other housing providers and a few outside of the city as well.”
She said the foundation was “actively seeking partners” to support the Imagination Library across Northern Ireland.