It was Dolly Parton's proudest legacy. Now an Australian town must keep it alive

In the regional NSW city of Tamworth, more than 3,000 children are reading more books because of Dolly Parton — a mark of Australia's connection to the legendary country singer, actor and philanthropist that runs deeper than one might initially think.

Parton died on Wednesday morning at 80. Tributes have poured in from around the world, but in Tamworth, the loss is more personal.

The city, dubbed the country music capital of Australia, holds an official sister-city bond with Parton's adopted hometown of Nashville and hosted Parton herself on her last Australian tour in 2014.

"It's an incredible nod to us that she would come here when most stars are looking for the big 70,000-seater auditoriums, whereas ours is 5,000 seats," Cheryl Brown, from the Tamworth Country Music Festival, told SBS News.

"So for her to come here, she certainly validated us as the country music capital and that saw us being an important part of country music here in Australia."

But it's her gift of the Imagination Library program, one of Parton's most personal philanthropic projects, that has really transformed Tamworth.

Founded in 1995 as a tribute to her illiterate father, Dolly Parton's Imagination Library is a free book-gifting program — now running across the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada, Ireland, and Australia — that mails new, age-appropriate books to children from birth until they turn five, completely free of charge.

It has gifted more than 300 million books to children since it started 31 years ago. In Australia, more than two million of those books have been delivered to 151,000 children across 480 communities since its launch here in 2013.

Dolly's 'gold star' pupil

In Tamworth, where the program has run since 2019, its ambassador Lisa Rennie says it has fundamentally changed how children relate to reading and literacy.

"Children from birth to the age of five are eligible to receive the books, which are chosen by qualified speech pathologists and early literacy teachers," Rennie told SBS News.

"There are currently about 3,500 children on average on the program in the Tamworth region."

Since 2019, more than 98 per cent of children born in Tamworth have been enrolled.

"We've been classed the gold star program," Rennie said.

Families sign up at no cost, ensuring accessibility for those experiencing disadvantage — books are posted to each home each month, and caregivers are also given reading guidance sheets to help foster lifelong reading in families.

About 70 per cent of those books are by Australian authors and 10 per cent by First Nations authors.

Research from United Way Australia, which delivers the program in Australia, found children involved in the program in Tamworth were being read to more often, for longer, and had more books in the home than the average Australian child.

They were also significantly more likely to demonstrate emerging literacy skills, with Rennie expecting that, as graduates of the program enter primary school, they will show an increased level of literacy reflected in NAPLAN results in the region.

"Children in our region are being read to more often, for longer, and if they're on the program for the full five years, they're receiving a whole library of 60 books that they can cherish," she said.

"There's more people visiting our local libraries, which is fantastic, which is purely as a result of this program," she adds.

United Way CEO Dr Lyndsey McKee says Parton started the program as a response to her own upbringing in a family that experienced poverty.

"Her father was illiterate and she was one of 12, so she didn't have access to opportunities that many children have," McKee told SBS News. "With that lived experience, she really wanted to bring storytelling to the world."

"It's a huge legacy beyond her singing ... she's such an incredible philanthropist."

Keeping the legacy going

In lieu of flowers, Parton's family has asked for donations to be made to the Imagination Library.

It's a request that carries extra weight in Australia: the Imagination Library is the only program of its kind in the country, and it could sit in a precarious financial position, particularly amid Parton's death.

The program operates through a shared funding model with The Dollywood Foundation, Parton's charity organisation, and United Way Australia.

But the costs of running the program are left to the community.

"United Way send the books out, but we arrange the funding here locally with fundraisers and sponsorships from local businesses, council, local clubs, and even individuals reach out to give the gift of literacy," Rennie explained.

In July, US singer-songwriter Taylor Swift and her husband Travis Kelce donated US$2 million ($2.78 million) to the Imagination Library as part of a wider round of wedding-week giving — but that kind of support doesn't necessarily flow through to the grassroots costs faced by groups like Tamworth's.

Those costs add up. Each book delivered costs $9 per child per month.

In somewhere like Tamworth, that equates to just under $400,000 a year required to keep every eligible child enrolled.

McKee said there's an "absolute need" for Parton's program in Australia.

"Twenty per cent of children are starting school developmentally vulnerable. One in three children in the recent NAPLAN results were not meeting the reading benchmark."

"The evidence says this program works.

"We want to use this important moment to actually do more and bring this program to more children and communities in the years ahead."

Brown says Dolly will "be on the streets of Tamworth forever" as a result of the program.

"It's a wonderful gift that Dolly has given to us here in Tamworth, and we will certainly endeavour to carry that on forever," she said.

Rennie says it's even more important that donations continue to flow through the program following Parton's death.

"The Tamworth region will be forever grateful for Dolly Parton introducing this program to Australia," she said.

"But I think now more than ever, this program needs to continue because it'll be in her legacy.

"We need the financial support to ensure that it does continue."

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