Around half a million books have been provided to Irish children since 2019 through the Dolly Parton Imagination Library. Books are currently being delivered to more than 6,500 children across Dublin, Kildare and Cork, according to the library’s executive director for Ireland and the UK, Steve Korris. Speaking to The Irish Times following the death of the singer and philanthropist on Tuesday, Korris said the programme will continue as normal across Ireland and the UK with “no foreseeable end”. “Dolly was always a dreamer, she dreamed big dreams and went out and was herself and delivered those dreams in the most incredible way,” he said. “The Imagination Library has always been visioned as a programme that would last for generations. This has never been an intention of hers that it would just be set up for a couple of years. It has always been built on the foundation that it would last generations and generations. “In real terms, the Imagination Library continues today as it did yesterday. Books go out through the door every month and they’ll continue to go out every month with no foreseeable end.“The foundation still provides the vast majority of all the overhead costs associated with the programme; staffing, the book-order system that we have, delivery. Our local programme partners pay the costs of the books. That model will continue.” The Imagination Library first started providing books to Irish children after it was contacted by the Childhood Development Initiative (CDI) in Tallaght, Dublin. Since then, further partnerships have been set up with Tuath Housing in Dublin, Let’s Grow Together in Cork and Cill Dara Housing Association in Kildare. Korris said the foundation also currently has a partnership with An Post, which delivers all the books for free across its programmes in the Republic of Ireland. Dolly Parton's charity offers free books to children “Children get registered at birth and then they get a book from birth until their fifth birthday, so they can get up to 60 books in total,” added Korris.“We have 10,000 children [from Ireland] who have already graduated out and hit their fifth birthday. They got their special letter from Dolly through the post and graduated. Then we have another 6,500 who are in the programme currently. “When you look at the neuroscience behind brain development and cognitive function, from birth and those first years of life are just so incredibly important, that’s where you can have the biggest impact on anyone’s life at any one time. That’s why the programme is focused on that space.” The Dolly Parton Imagination Library operates across Ireland, the UK, US, Canada and Australia, providing around 3.4 million books per month. Grace Walsh, who co-ordinates the programme for the Let’s Grow Together charity in Cork, said it was set up there in 2020 and described it as “an incredible initiative”. “Dolly was inspired because her own dad couldn’t read and write and felt really strongly that no child in this day and age should be in a position where they don’t have access to books and don’t have an opportunity to have a love of books. It has a real feel-good factor,” she said. “Some of the kids will be saying to their mum, ‘you know Dolly Parton sends me this book every month’. The kids genuinely think that Dolly is popping a book in the post to them. It is just incredible.” Walsh said there is a cost of around €1.33 to the affiliated partner per book which is secured through fundraising and local grants.