Dolly Parton Dies at 80, Leaving West Virginia Legacy Through More Than 5 Million Books

CLARKSBURG, W.Va. — Dolly Parton, the country music legend whose songs made her one of America’s most recognizable entertainers, died Tuesday at age 80, leaving behind a legacy that stretches far beyond music.

In West Virginia, one part of that legacy can be measured in more than 5 million children’s books.

Marshall University program materials report that 5 million books have been mailed to West Virginia children through Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library since 2006. The program, which is marking its 20th anniversary in West Virginia this year, continues to deliver books to children in every county.

And the books are still arriving.

Marshall University reported in April that 146,400 books had been delivered to West Virginia children during the previous three months, or nearly 49,000 books per month. Each book is mailed directly to a child with his or her name on it.

Parton’s connection to the program brought her personally to West Virginia in 2022.

On Aug. 9 of that year, Parton appeared at the Clay Center for the Arts and Sciences in Charleston after making a promise that she would visit the state once her Imagination Library became available in all 55 counties.

West Virginia reached that milestone, and Parton kept her word.

During “An Evening with Dolly: Celebrating Imagination Library in West Virginia,” Parton joined Marshall University President Brad D. Smith onstage for a fireside conversation about literacy, her upbringing and the program she had started nearly three decades earlier.

The evening also included a performance by the Appalachian Children’s Chorus, presentations from state leaders and two songs performed by Parton herself, “Coat of Many Colors” and “Try.”

Then-Gov. Jim Justice proclaimed Aug. 9 as Dolly Parton Imagination Library Day in West Virginia. Students from the Nicholas County Technical Center also created a handcrafted wooden outline of West Virginia that was presented to Parton during the celebration.

Parton founded the Imagination Library in 1995 in her home county in Tennessee, inspired in large part by her father, who could not read or write.

The idea was simple: give young children books of their own.

Children enrolled in the program receive a free, age-appropriate book mailed directly to their home each month from birth until they begin school, regardless of family income. A child enrolled for the full program can receive a personal library of as many as 60 books.

West Virginia expanded the program statewide, with all 55 counties participating by 2021. When Parton came to Charleston the following year, state education officials reported that nearly 4 million books had already been delivered to West Virginia children. That total has since surpassed 5 million.

The program remains active across the state today.

As of May 1, 46,048 West Virginia children were enrolled, according to the latest West Virginia Department of Education data. That includes 1,646 children in Harrison County, where nearly half of eligible children are currently participating.

Families can still enroll children in the program.

Parents and guardians can check availability and register eligible children through the official Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library website. The program is available at no cost to families and does not have an income requirement.

Check availability and enroll a child

The literacy effort became one part of an extraordinary career that made Parton one of the most recognizable entertainers in the world.

Born in rural Tennessee in 1946, Parton rose from poverty to write more than 3,000 songs and sell more than 100 million records worldwide during a career spanning nearly six decades.

Her catalog included some of the most recognizable songs in country and popular music, among them “Jolene,” “Coat of Many Colors,” “9 to 5” and “I Will Always Love You.” The latter found a new generation of listeners when Whitney Houston recorded it for The Bodyguard.

Parton won 11 Grammy Awards and was inducted into both the Country Music Hall of Fame and the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. Her career also extended into film through roles in movies including 9 to 5 and Steel Magnolias, while Dollywood grew into one of Tennessee’s best-known attractions.

She performed for West Virginia audiences during her career as well.

But when Parton returned to Charleston in 2022, she was not there for a traditional concert.

She came because West Virginia had embraced a literacy program she began decades earlier and made it available to children in every county.

During that celebration, Parton said she hoped the program would inspire children to “dream more, care more, learn more and be more.”

Four years later, the program she came to West Virginia to celebrate remains active in all 55 counties during the same year the state is marking its 20th anniversary.

More than 5 million books have already made their way into West Virginia homes, and tens of thousands of children are still receiving another one each month.

For those families, Dolly Parton’s legacy is not only found in the songs and performances she left behind.

It continues to arrive in the mailbox, one book at a time.