00:00This is such a great story.
00:01You guys are going to love this.
00:03So you've heard about Dolly Parton.
00:05We all know Dolly Parton, right?
00:07Her imagination library, which sends books to kids so that they can get interested in reading before they even get
00:15to school.
00:16So there is a push for this to happen in more areas all around the United States, including Waltham, Massachusetts.
00:26Oh, very cool.
00:27Now, why does Waltham matter so much to us here on the Indy Summer Show?
00:31Because it's where we broadcast from in the greater Boston area.
00:35Very true.
00:36And so this town of Waltham has started their own imagination library.
00:40No way.
00:41Yes.
00:42And this is amazing.
00:43So if you have a child or you know a child who's up to five years old, you can get
00:48them registered to receive one free book every month delivered to their house by the Postal Service.
00:56Can you imagine your five-year-old running out to the mailbox knowing that they are going to get a
01:02package with their name on it, that book just for them?
01:04And the whole idea is just to encourage reading at home before these kids even get into kindergarten, which is
01:11going to make them leaps and bounds ahead of where they would be had they not ever owned a book.
01:15My wife was an early elementary school teacher for years and then was a preschool teacher.
01:18And the stats are unbelievable when it comes to having books in the home and being read every day or
01:24not when it comes to student readiness for elementary school.
01:28And it's also teaching them how to order things because you're going to be getting them delivered early.
01:33So they're going to be learning that at an early age.
01:36So, yeah, this is the precursor to Amazon.
01:38Is that what you're saying?
01:39That's kind of where I'm getting at.
01:41Instacart, DoorDash, and Amazon.
01:42Maybe we shouldn't teach them that too young.
01:45Moms and dads are kind of in charge of that part right now.
01:48They did a really good job teaching my wife that at some point, I guess.
01:52But you're right, Jeff.
01:53I mean, it is proven effective.
01:55And the great thing is that there are all these volunteers that are making this happen.
01:59So a huge shout out to the people who are really taking on this responsibility just to make sure that
02:05the kids of Waltham are doing good things.
02:08So, bravo.
02:09You can very easily go to WalthamImaginationLibrary.com.
02:14And, again, the folks that are doing this are saying, listen, we're doing this in our community and we know
02:19that it's going to be successful and we're super excited about it.
02:21But we hope to get the word out so that, A, not only can we get people to kind of
02:26help.
02:26It's only $3 a book.
02:27So if you don't have a kid, you can also just make a donation right there on the website, WalthamImaginationLibrary
02:33.com.
02:34But also to inspire this in towns all over the United States.
02:38Yeah, I think this is just a seed that's going to keep growing.
02:41And Dolly, I mean, planted it years ago and now here you see her influence even after her death is
02:46just so, so powerful.
02:48Way to go, volunteers.
03:01You
