Pittsburgh children's bookstore honors Dolly Parton on 9/25 Day

The hit song "9 to 5" was an anthem to the working class, and it has a new meaning now, with September 25, or 9/25, dedicated to the irreplaceable Dolly Parton.

At B is for Books, they're honoring Parton with cookies, cut-outs, and through her second passion, children's literacy. Parton championed the Imagination Library, and B is for Books' nonprofit called Reading Ready Pittsburgh supports that, too.

"She is a model of what Americans can do if they really want to take care of our small children," said Reading Ready founder Mary Denison. "Really, it's a partnership between the local nonprofit [like Reading Ready Pittsburgh] and the Imagination Library. So, we pay about $40 a year per child to get those books mailed to our children in Allegheny County."

The program, Imagination Library, mails one free book a month to kids 5 and under who participate, based on ZIP code.

"We've seen a tremendous increase in interest in the program. We've seen about 700 kids between the city of Pittsburgh and the county have enrolled in the program since August 25," said Reading Ready Pittsburgh's Imagination Library coordinator Pam Calfo.

Now, one month to the day since Dolly Parton passed from cancer, the city of Pittsburgh is formally naming this Friday "Dolly Parton Day" too.

It's a day to donate in Dolly's name. In fact, a donor agreed to give Reading Ready Pittsburgh a matching grant for $15,000.

"And our goal is to meet that amount of $15,000 by the end of today," said Denison.

It's a mission in the name of Dolly to share the love of reading, with children here and beyond.

"We've seen so much interest in the program. Honestly, that's probably what Dolly would've wanted her legacy to be," said Calfo.

Children 5 and under who come here can take home three free books at the end of their visit, too. B is for Books will stay open until 3 p.m.