DENVER — Every month, thousands of Denver families get a book delivered in the mail. But next month will look different as the program is pausing its services due to a lack of funding, an increase in book prices, and a growing need in the Mile High City.
Imagination Library Denver is part of Dolly Parton's Imagination Library, which provides 8,300 families throughout the Denver metro with a book for free every month.
Laura Douglas, interim director at Imagination Library Denver, said there has been an increase in enrollment since the nonprofit was created in 2015.
"It's all great that we have family learning centers and preschools to teach kids, but parents are always those first teachers, and so it's so important to have those books in the household. There's tons of statistics about the importance of having books."
Over the past 12 months, Douglas said the demand for the program has increased by 22% — along with the cost of acquiring and shipping those books.
"We all know the post office is going up, and then part of it is also just the cost of books, the whole inflation piece," explained Douglas. "Dollywood is doing everything they can to change the sizes of some of the books because they customize the books so that they fit better in mailboxes, so they aren't as expensive."
At the beginning of this year, Douglas was notified by Imagination Library that the cost of books went from $2.20 to $2.60.
Denver7 reached out to the Dollywood Foundation regarding the cost increase and how that will affect local groups. Denver7 received this statement:
"Due to a recent increase in enrollment, our Denver Imagination Library program has exceeded available local funding. As a result, book deliveries will be temporarily paused in May. We are actively working to secure additional funding and resume the program as soon as possible."
Another challenge the Denver group is facing is a lack of private funding. Douglas explained organizations have shifted focus to support early childhood education.
"The other piece of it is that in this shifting climate right now, a lot of our local donors and foundations have shifted their priorities away from early childhood literacy to more support directly to the preschools and professional development," Douglas said.
Jack Tate, CEO of Imagination Library of Colorado, explained the state budget does not play a role in this decision.
"The state is here to provide the matching dollars for the book purchases by every one of our affiliates. In this case, the Denver affiliate has grown to a point where they're no longer able to support the program financially. So they are now working to get back on their feet and be able to deliver books in the Denver community."
Tate said statewide the organization delivers books to around 86,000 children a month and "we're working hard, along with the governor's office, to make the Denver program a priority."
- Jack Tate, the CEO of Imagination Library of Colorado, spoke to Denver7 Thursday about how many children benefit from the program. Watch what he had to say in the video player below.
Besides delivering books to families in the Denver metro, the nonprofit also brings books to early childhood learning centers like Mile High Learning Westwood. Teacher Haile Arriaza explained this program helps bridge the gaps in inequities in education.
"I think it's important for people to be aware of how much this foundation is providing and giving access to them, to be able to get books and to practice that literacy skill," Arriaza explained. "I think a lot of people are unaware that it makes the difference of whether a whole family will get a book or not, or will have access to literacy or not."
In response to Imagination Library Denver pausing its service, Arriaza explained the impact this will have on countless children and their future success.
"Well, it's honestly really devastating to hear, especially being that, my classroom is a headstart classroom, which means that most of our families face a lot of economic challenges. They do not have the privilege of being able to make buying books a priority," Arriaza said.
Douglas explained that in the past, Imagination Library Denver would not ask for donations from families. However, given the circumstances, they now are seeking support.
"So the other piece of that is we are not allowed to ask parents for donations, so any child that is enrolled in the program, this is a gift to that family," explained Douglas. "It is meant to be a gift to be shared, throughout our community and so we can't ask those parents for donations. Now we can, and so the letters that we've sent out to parents are alerting them about not getting books; they can click on a link there and they can donate that way."
Following the announcement, Douglas shared donations have started to pour in. A link to support the nonprofit can be found here.
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