An Evening With Dolly, Celebrating Imagination Library In W.Va.

Country music legend and philanthropist Dolly Parton will appear live in Charleston’s Clay Center for the Arts and Sciences on Tuesday, Aug. 9 at 5:30 p.m. to celebrate West Virginia’s full participation in her Imagination Library reading program.

The private event will include a “fireside chat” with Parton and Marshall University President Brad Smith, and two songs performed by the artist, including her hit “Coat of Many Colors.”

West Virginia Public Broadcasting will exclusively broadcast and stream the ceremony live with Parton.

Watch the live event with Dolly Parton below:

“It’s an honor for West Virginia Public Broadcasting to bring this incredible event to our viewers,” said Butch Antolini, WVPB chief executive officer and executive director. “Dolly Parton is a legend who is beloved in Appalachia and she clearly has a heart for our people, especially our children.”

“I am thrilled to share and celebrate that every child from birth to five in West Virginia is eligible to register for my Imagination Library,” Parton said. “Together, we can inspire children to dream more, care more, learn more and be more.”

Parton, a world renown singer and songwriter, is a member of the Country Music Hall of Fame since 1999 and a member of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame upon her induction this year. She has sold more than 100 million records worldwide.

Also an actress and television celebrity that has appeared in dozens of films and TV shows, Parton has become well known as an entrepreneur and a philanthropist.

Her work as an advocate in early childhood literacy led to the launch of her program, Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library, in 1995. It provides high quality, age-appropriate books each month to enrolled children from birth to age 5, at no cost to families.

Children in all 55 counties of West Virginia participate and more than three million books have been provided to kids in West Virginia since 2007.

The Imagination Library program is administered through a partnership between Marshall University’s June Harless Center and the West Virginia Department of Education.

To view the event Aug. 9, tune to your local West Virginia Public Broadcasting TV channel or scroll up in this story to view our stream. You can also find the stream on our YouTube page here.

For more information about Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library, visit imaginationlibrary.com.