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Smart Start of Mecklenburg County and Dolly Parton's Imagination Library are working together to bring books to Mecklenburg County's youngest children through funding provided by the North Carolina General Assembly.

During the 2017 legislative session, North Carolina state lawmakers included $3.5 million in the first year of the budget and $7 million in the second year for the Smart Start network to offer free books through Dolly Parton's Imagination Library to children across the state. Imagination Library is a program created to foster a love of reading among children aged birth to five through the gift of a specially selected book delivered right to their home each month.

The Dolly Parton Imagination Library (DPIL) Program has been in Mecklenburg County for the past 2 years supporting 2,800 children with private dollars.  Smart Start of Mecklenburg County (SSMC) has been awarded state funding to expand the existing DPIL program county wide.  This amount allows SSMC to support an additional 20,000 children to receive age related, developmentally appropriate books mailed directly to their homes monthly.

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