Ivy, Virginia (6/29/2023) – QuickStart Tennis of Central Virginia, Inc. (QCV) is pleased to report we are helping start a local affiliate of Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library (DPIL) in Louisa County. The Rotary Club of Louisa will partner with the Dollywood Foundation and has offered a $5,000 community match grant to help fund the startup. QCV has also received a $2,100 grant from the Washington Forrest Foundation to fund the first year of estimated costs and a $2,000 grant from the Louisa County Community Fund. The immediate goal is to raise a total of $15,982, which will cover the first three years, before the affiliate is activated. There are 2,000+ kids under age five in Louisa. For only $13.20 a year, one child will receive a book mailed directly to their home each month at no cost to their families. The cost per child is small. The potential impact is HUGE!

A local DPIL Advisory Group is being formed. Initial members include Pat Hanley (Rotary President), Maggie Morris and Nancy Robinson of United Bank in Louisa, Danielle Harlow, Laurie Lammonds and Amanda Water of Louisa County Public Schools, Lauren Cunningham, a homeschool mom, John Ortiz of Little Leaf Village and Peggy Kerestes, a retired teacher. The group is open to anyone in Louisa County who would like to promote early childhood literacy and have a lot of fun getting kids enrolled. Contact Maggie Morris at Maggie.Morris@bankwithunited.com if you would like to join in the fun.

QCV Founder Lynda Harrill says, “We still have nine counties of the 28 we serve that need to start DPIL. (A little over two years ago, we had kids enrolled in only three of our counties.) We’ve been talking to the folks in Louisa for a while and now have some traction to move forward. Both Pat and Maggie have been leading the charge. We now need the Louisa community to step up to support this wonderful book-gifting program. A donation of any amount will be appreciated and put to very good use and will be matched by the Rotary Club. DPIL will make a difference in the lives of so many kids. Every child has the right to learn to read. DPIL gives kids the tools. Too many kids don’t have home libraries. DPIL takes care of that in a proven, cost-effective way. And besides, who doesn’t love Dolly! We certainly do!

Dolly with The Little Engine That Could, the first book sent to all children who are signed up.

Want to be a great adult?

Play tennis! Read books! Eat healthy! Have FUN!!!

Be a QuickStart kid!

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QuickStart Tennis of Central Virginia is an all-volunteer, grassroots Community Tennis Association established in 2009 as a 501(c)(3) charitable organization to promote, develop and grow QuickStart Tennis in the heart of Virginia for all beginners, especially underserved youth, using the kid-sized QuickStart Tennis format. QCV’s service area includes Albemarle, Amelia, Appomattox, Brunswick, Buckingham, Campbell, Charlotte, Culpeper, Cumberland, Dinwiddie, Fluvanna, Franklin, Greene, Greensville, Halifax, Henry, Louisa, Lunenburg, Madison, Mecklenburg, Nelson, Nottoway, Orange, Patrick, Pittsylvania, Powhatan, Prince Edward, and Rappahannock counties and the cities of Charlottesville, Danville and Martinsville. Through tennis, we create happy, healthy, active and literate kids in the communities we serve.

Visit QCV at www.quickstartcentral.org and on Facebook.

For additional information, contact quickstartcentral@comcast.net.