Everyone loves a parade, so what better way to celebrate Imagination Library Week than with a parade through downtown to the park.

National Imagination Library Week is scheduled for Sept. 18-23. As Tennessee is the birthplace of the Imagination Library, and its founder Dolly Parton, there are special events planned across the state during the week. Here locally the Carter County Imagination Library has a special celebration planned.

On Thursday, Sept. 21, starting at 10 a.m., the Carter County Imagination Library will host “Book It To The Bridge” as a way to celebrate the program and the children it serves.

“We will host a sidewalk parade from the West end of downtown Elizabethton and travel to the historic Covered Bridge Park,” said CCIL Board Member Tyler Fleming. “Our Board decided it would be a good way to celebrate the program.”

Carter County Imagination Library has invited students from the Early Learning Centers, local pre-school programs, and kindergarten classes from the Carter County and City of Elizabethton school systems. The parade will start in front of Southern Restaurant and continue through downtown to the park. Those attending are asked to meet at 9:45 a.m. before the parade kickoff at 10 a.m.

“We ask that each child bring a favorite book or sign to carry in the parade,” Fleming said. “Once we reach the park we will have some surprise celebrities to read for the children.”

Imagination Library Week is being celebrated in partnership with the Governor’s Books From Birth Foundation, which supports the Imagination Library efforts across the state.

One of the special guests for “Book It To The Bridge” will be Theresa Carl, who serves as the Tennessee State President of the Governor’s Books From Birth Foundation. Other guests include Mr. Bill, the Elizabethton Twins mascot “Rookie,” the Chik-fil-A Cow, and many more.

The Book It To The Bridge is free to the public and open to all children eligible for the Imagination Library program.

The approximate “pre-school age” population of Carter County is over 3,000, or about 5.2 percent of the total Carter County population. The goal of the Imagination Library is to get books to each of these children   

Last year the Carter County Imagination Library ordered approximately 24,000 books for children in the county. Since it’s beginning,  the Carter County Imagination Library has exceeded over 275,000 books to children’s homes in the county. The approximate total cost to the local Imagination Library for books is over $25,000 annually.

The state is celebrating a milestone with the Imagination Library and Governors Books From Birth programs. More than 30 million books have been mailed to children in Tennessee through these programs since 2004.