Imagination Library of Colorado

A nonprofit organization

Statement from Dolly

“Before he passed away, my Daddy told me the Imagination Library was probably the most important thing I had ever done. I can’t tell you how much that meant to me because I created the Imagination Library as a tribute to my Daddy. He was the smartest man I have ever known but I know in my heart his inability to read probably kept him from fulfilling all of his dreams.

Inspiring kids to love to read became my mission. In the beginning, my hope was simply to inspire the children in my home county but here we are today with a worldwide program that gives a book a month to well over 1 million children.

Of course, I have not done this alone. The real heroes of our story are the thousands of local organizations who have embraced my dream and made it their own. They raise millions of dollars each year and wake up every day with a passion to make sure their kids have every opportunity to succeed..."


Imagination Library of Colorado

In 2020, Colorado Governor Jared Polis signed the bipartisan sponsored bill, SB20-185, creating a statewide Imagination Library program. Since then, Imagination Library of Colorado (ILCO) has expanded to reach all 64 Colorado counties, providing free books for more than 83,000 Colorado children each month. Some of our recent accomplishments include: 

  • 1,965,294 books mailed to Colorado children since ILCO was founded.
  • 26% of Colorado kids ages 0-5 receive Imagination Library books.
  • 16% of all books mailed are either fully bilingual Spanish/English or include Spanish-language content. 


With the State's commitment to match every dollar raised for books, every dollar donated is a book in the hand of a Colorado kid. Please consider supporting either our Statewide program, or our fundraising drive to open Imagination Library in every zip code in Jefferson County. 

Mission

The sole purpose of the Imagination Library of Colorado is to promote early childhood literacy and kindergarten readiness in all 64 counties within the state of Colorado for children up to age five through the gift of reading. Each month, ILCO, in partnership with the Dollywood Foundation/Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library, mails one book per month to all registered children, regardless of income level, addressed to them, at no cost to the child's family. The five-year goal is to mail 210,199 books per month to children living in Colorado - this equates to 65% of all Colorado children ages 0-5. Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library considers a community saturated when 65% of children are enrolled in the program.

Background Statement

The importance of equitable access to early childhood books was amplified when Governor Polis signed SB20-185 on July 10, 2020, creating a statewide Imagination Library (IL) program. This commitment to match every dollar raised for books throughout the state offers a significant incentive for the organization to work with local philanthropists, businesses and individual donors who can leverage the matched dollar to sustain the program.

Organization Data

Summary

Organization name

Imagination Library of Colorado

Year Established

2021

Tax id (EIN)

85-4295349

Category

Education

Organization Size

Large Organization

Address

3000 LAWRENCE ST
DENVER, CO 80205

Service areas

CO, US