The City of Crookston officially has The Dolly Parton Imagination Library, a part of the community. The foundation is a worldwide organization that provides books for children ages 1 to 5 by giving them a free book once a month. The foundation began in 1995 and grew quickly, turning into an organization that now serves children worldwide.
Katie Proulx is the one who wanted to introduce the foundation to the Crookston community and first learned about the non-profit when she was living in Rochester, Minnesota. Proulx has a background in special ed, and after seeing how the program benefits students in these areas, she wanted to be a part of bringing it to Crookston.
Proulx, along with Gina Gunderson, got the ball rolling on the project and talked about the process of getting it up and running. “We have been trying to get this to our community for about a year,” said Proulx. “Last spring, we got Crookston Public Schools to be the local champion, and they manage child enrollment, donations, and the cost of books each month while promoting the program locally.”
Some minor technical issues have been overcome, and Proulx says it took a lot of people to get the foundation up and running. “It’s been a process. Gina Gunderson and Crookston Public Schools have both been a huge help,” said Proulx. “It took a lot of time and a lot of people to get this going, so we are just so excited that it’s finally here.”
Over 50 kids in the community have now signed up and will be receiving their first book in November. Proulx said they have received some generous donations to get the program up and running. “We’ve had some generous donations contributed to the program,” said Proulx. “For those interested in signing their kid up or donating, you go to www.imaginationlibrary.com, click check availability, enter your zip code, and Crookston will pop up. From there, you can register or donate.”
Proulx also talked about why she feels the foundation is essential and why she worked on bringing it to Crookston. “It’s so helpful to promote literacy and learning in our community,” said Proulx. “There are so many statistics that if you have a love for reading at an early age, you will keep that growth in school and beyond, so we just really want to promote that from a young age.”
Any family with a child between birth to 5 is eligible to sign up and receive an age-appropriate and high-quality book each month. There is one important qualification to be eligible. “When you sign up, you have to enter your address so the books can come to the correct place,” said Proulx. “So, you do have to live in Crookston.”
The goal is to keep the foundation in Crookston long-term and make sure it doesn’t phase out after a couple of years. Proulx said they’re grateful for the donations they’ve received so far and will gladly continue to accept any money that can be offered to make sure they can keep things running long-term.
If you have other questions specific to the foundation in the Crookston area, you can reach Katie Proulx at krhino185@hotmail.com, or Gina Gunderson at ginagunderson@isd593.org.
