W’burg Kiwanis Club recognizes Medley

The Williamsburg Kiwanis Club thanked a long-time volunteer for her work to help the club in recent years during its monthly regular November meeting.

Williamsburg Kiwanis Club President Dave Perry presents Kim Medley with a certificate of appreciation.

President David Perry presented Kim Medley with a certificate of appreciation and made her an honorary member of the Williamsburg Kiwanis Club.

The certificate “recognizes with gratitude the selfless and cooperative voluntary service of” Medley.

Medley is the wife of Williamsburg Kiwanis Club Treasurer Terrell Medley, and she has been instrumental in helping with events, such as the annual prayer breakfast each May.

Also during the Nov. 14 meeting, the club heard from Whitley County Public Library Children’s Librarian Shonna Brown about efforts to improve early childhood literacy.

Brown noted that during the 2019-2020 fiscal year, the Tri-County Community Early Childhood Council received $7,500 for a start-up of the Dolly Parton Imagination Library.

The program is for children and will send a book to children every month from birth until the children are five years old.

Locally, there are nearly 2,600 children under the age of five. The $7,500 will serve 300 children for one year.

The Corbin Public Library also has funding from this project, and Brown noted that Whitley County’s funding would be geared more towards serving the rural parts of the county.

The Dollywood Foundation initiated a review of more than 20 years of research conducted on Imagination Library programs in the United States and internationally, and found that the program is extremely popular in the communities where it is implemented and shows promise in promoting changes in home literacy environments, children’s attitudes toward reading and early literacy skills.