Following the peaceful passing of Dolly Parton at her Nashville home, millions of fans are mourning the loss of a music icon. However, the singer is also being remembered for an extraordinary philanthropic legacy that touched the lives of children around the globe.
For one mother named Sue Spencer (@susieespencer), Parton’s legacy is deeply personal. Up until a few years ago, Spencer’s home was completely silent.
Because her daughter is autistic, she was highly sensitive to sound and could not tolerate music.
Dolly’s Imagination Library
“No radio on to do the dishes, no playlist for cleaning, no random little dance parties — nothing,” Spencer recalled in a heartfelt tribute posted to Threads.
The silence remained unbroken until the family received a copy of Parton’s illustrated children’s book, Coat of Many Colors, through the Imagination Library program.
The first time Spencer read the story to her daughter, she explained that the book was actually based on a song. After a few more reads, her daughter’s curiosity was piqued. She asked her mother if she could sing the song out loud. Eventually, that curiosity blossomed into a desire to hear the actual recorded track.
The sound of music flooded their home
After years of a complete musical drought in their home, Spencer played the song. To her absolute amazement, her daughter loved it and immediately asked to hear more of Parton’s catalog.
“A while later, I had a 7-year-old belting out ‘Jolene,’” Spencer wrote.
Spencer eventually taught her daughter how to operate a music streaming app independently. The little girl who could not tolerate background noise is now completely immersed in music.
“Cut to now, and she’s a 12-year-old with playlists for every mood, each one with a little bit of Dolly in,” Spencer noted.
Dolly’s “proudest achievement”
That massive developmental breakthrough was made possible by the Imagination Library. Parton launched the free book-gifting program in 1995 in her home state of Tennessee. She was deeply inspired by her father, who spent his life feeling a sense of shame because he could not read or write. Parton noted that her father always dreamed of her being called the “book lady.”
In a past interview with Local On 2, Parton admitted the Imagination Library was one of her proudest achievements. Intended to reach children regardless of their family’s financial situation, the foundation has gifted over 250 million books globally.
That incredible mission is not slowing down. Sally Smith, who operates the Imagination Library in South Oxford, told the BBC that the Dollywood Foundation has “strong legacy plans” firmly in place.
“Children will continue to receive those magical objects into their lives for many years to come,” Smith said.
For Spencer and her daughter, those magical objects did more than just encourage reading. They finally brought the joy of music into a silent home.
