Although better known as a singer/songwriter and a 42 time Grammy award nominee, Dolly Parton (pictured with Air Business' Simon Harris) has since the 1980’s supported many charitable efforts, focusing particularly on improving the state of education and literacy in children everywhere. Dolly initiated the ‘Imagination Library’ programme in 1995 through her charitable organisation, The Dollywood Foundation, with the aim of ensuring that every pre-school child in her home town of Sevier County, Tennessee, would have access to their own personal library of books that would promote a love of reading and learning from an early age.
Since its inception the award winning literacy programme has been successfully replicated in 566 counties in 36 states in the continental USA (including Canada) and was recently expanded in December 2007 to include Europe, with Rotherham, South Yorkshire becoming the first British Locality to receive books.
As the strategic partner of the PPA, FIPP and a market leader in International mail distribution, solutions and fulfilment, Air Business is well suited to ensure Dolly’s vision of mailing each enrolled child one age appropriate book per month from birth to kindergarten is achieved.
Doreen Mcammon, Director of Operations, The Dollywood Foundation said: “Air Business is a good fit for Dolly’s Imagination Library programme in the UK. They not only provide a full range of mailing and shipping services, but they also offered us very competitive pricing. Despite the time zone differences, Air Business provides great continuity of service and communication.”
Air Business Group MD Adam Sherman added, “Air Business is delighted to be entrusted with the task of storing and distributing the books on behalf of the Imagination Library and looks forward to a long and successful partnership with Dolly and her team.”
About Air Business
Air Business says: “Air Business, a wholly owned subsidiary of The Irish Post Office, operates from three major locations in Hertfordshire, Essex and Oxfordshire. The business has seen substantial growth in the last five years and has now established itself as the leading player in quality distribution services in the industry. Investment in data processing capacity and fulfilment capability teamed with a global agency network has led to vastly improved delivery times for publishing customers. For further information please contact Loraine Hirst on 01727 890 620 or email sales@airbusonline.com.”
About The Dollywood Foundation
The Foundation says: “The Dollywood Foundation is the organizational body that oversees the Imagination Library, a free book distribution program started by Dolly Parton in 1996. The program is based at her Dollywood theme park near Pigeon Forge, Tennessee. Every child in Sevier County, Tennessee, the area where she was born and raised, is eligible to receive a free age-appropriate book each month in the mail until the age of five. The program has since expanded to Branson, Missouri and Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, cities where Dolly's businesses operate. The program can be implemented in other communities by private organizations, and the Foundation is responsible for the distribution of books in those participating communities."
