COBB COUNTY, Ga. — A book from Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library is helping inspire a Cobb County library system employee to reflect on the singer’s legacy, and the importance of making libraries welcoming and accessible to everyone.
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Jessica Parker, the Cobb County Public Library’s head of Accessibility Services, shared the reflection in a post published by Cobb County.
She said the moment came while sharing Braille overlay books with a patron and realizing one of them was from Parton’s Imagination Library.
“For both of us, it felt very special that, somehow, this book found its way to our collection,” Parker wrote.
The Cobb County Public Library’s Accessibility Services Department works to help make the library accessible and welcoming through assistive technology, specialized community resources, inclusive programming and other services.
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The employee wrote that Parton’s legacy reflects many of the same values libraries strive to embrace: authenticity, accessibility, compassion and kindness.
The reflection also included a personal story about growing up in the mountains and once feeling self-conscious about the way she spoke.
“Eventually I realized that I had to decide whether or not hiding my roots was worth my time,” Parker wrote. “Guess what? I learned it wasn’t.”
Parker eventually became a supervisor, earned a master’s degree in library and information science and found her purpose through her work at the library.
The department also works to provide representation through books that highlight disability or feature characters with disabilities.
The employee said Parton’s life serves as a reminder that what people do for others can leave a lasting impact.
“When our stories conclude, we will not be remembered for the rows of books, the clacking of the keyboards at the computers, or even the impressiveness of the building,” the employee wrote.
Instead, she wrote, people will be remembered for acknowledging others, welcoming them and taking the time to make someone smile.
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