Amicus Foundation Announces Funding to Support Dolly Parton's Imagination Library in Southwest Montana

Amicus Foundation has announced funding to provide free books to Montana children through Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library, a book gifting program started by Dolly Parton to foster a love of reading among young children. Each child enrolled in the program receives one book per month from birth to age five at no cost to families. 

The Amicus Foundation has committed to covering the book and mailing costs for the program in six Montana counties for the next five years. The counties include Beaverhead, Broadwater, Deer Lodge, Jefferson, Madison, and Silver Bow County.

The Amicus Foundation was established in Montana in 2015 by John and Sheila Lake of Cameron, Montana with a focus on strategic investments in conservation, education, faith, families, health, and veterans.

“My wife, Sheila, and I are pleased to support Imagination Library and help further its impact in Montana, the place we call home,” said Mr. Lake. “One focus of the Amicus Foundation is supporting families, and Imagination Library is such a benefit to Montana families. The program encourages families to read aloud together and promotes early literacy that better prepares young children for school.”

Imagination Library is dedicated to inspiring a love of reading by gifting free, high-quality books each month to children from birth to age five and is available across Montana. Age-appropriate books are mailed directly to the homes of registered children each month, starting about 10 weeks after their registration is received. Parents or guardians may register their children online by filling out a brief form at http://www.imaginationlibrary.com. 

In June of 2023, First Lady Gianforte joined Dolly Parton in announcing the statewide expansion of Imagination Library in Montana, making the program available to children from birth to five years old in every county in Montana, regardless of a family’s income. The Treasure State Foundation, founded in 2021 by the First Lady to ensure future First Spouses in Montana can promote the public good with their causes, serves as Montana’s statewide sponsor for Imagination Library.

“We are very grateful to the Amicus Foundation for making this commitment to early literacy in Montana,” said First Lady Gianforte, TSF Chairwoman. “Many Montana children will benefit from this generosity as they open their mailboxes each month to find the gift of reading inside.”

For more information about Imagination Library, contact Teal Whitaker, outreach coordinator for Imagination Library of Montana, at teal@treasurestatefoundation.org or (406) 581-8976.