With Imagination Library donation, 100+ Men total support tops $207,000

Friday, May 10, 2019
Accepting a quarterly donation check for $12,200 from 100+ Men Who Care of Putnam County are Gwen Morris (left side of check), president of the Friends of the Putnam County Library, and Cathryn Ensley, chairman of the local Imagination Library program. Members of the 100+ Men group -- who made their very first donation in April 2015 to the Imagination Library effort -- on hand for the recent presentation are (from left) Todd Lewis, Bill Shuee, Page Cotton, Vince Aguirre, Eric Davis, Jim Ensley, Dave Murray and Library Executive Director Brian Briscoe.
Banner Graphic/Eric Bernsee

Imagination Library is the latest quarterly local recipient of a grant from 100+ Men Who Care of Putnam County.

This quarter’s check was in the amount of $12,200, presented recently to Cathryn Ensley, chairman of the local Imagination Library program, and Gwen Morris, president of the Friends of the Putnam County Library.

Since its April 2015 debut -- when its inaugural donation also went to Imagination Library for $11,200 -- the 100+ Men group has awarded more than $207,000 to Putnam County charities and nonprofit organizations, Mike Harmless, chairman of 100+ Men, said. It also has created a Community Grants Endowment at the Putnam County Community Foundation that provides money for the Foundation to utilize in their grant making process.

The Friends of the Putnam County Library, the Putnam County Library and Dolly Parton teamed up to bring the Imagination Library to Putnam County. The Imagination Library is a program started when “Dolly wanted to foster a love of reading among her county’s preschool children and their families. She wanted children to be excited about books and to feel the magic that books can create.“

The Friends of the Library wanted to share in Dolly’s dream by ensuring every child in Putnam County from birth up to age five will have his or her own personal books, regardless of the family’s income.

By signing up, a child receives a free book each month that comes addressed directly to the child by mail. Books selected are age-specific and directed toward what might be happening in a child’s life or development at the time he or she receives the book.

Currently, Imagination Library serves about 1,015 Putnam County children. Census data lists 1,945 children in Putnam County from birth to age five, which means that Imagination Library is serving 52.2 percent of the eligible population, or one in two county children of eligible age.

The 100+ Men of Putnam County group was created based on two principals: there were men who wanted to give back to the community but lacked the time to do fundraising or serve on boards, and the process needed to be fun and easy. Today, there are more than 120 members.

Interested men can visit the website www.100plusmen.com for general information as well as application forms (click on the “Join Us” icon), or check out its Facebook page, 100+ Men of Putnam County.

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