Country music legend and philanthropist Dolly Parton will be a keynote speaker during the 2010 RI Convention in Montréal, Québec, Canada, 20-23 June.

Parton will speak at the morning plenary session on 23 June to promote reading among preschool children. She and the Dollywood Foundation's Imagination Library teamed up with Rotary International in March to help provide age-appropriate books each month to children from birth until age five. Read more.

Parton will speak to Rotarians about the importance of early childhood reading and how the collaboration with Rotary International has augmented the success of the Imagination Library.

The singer developed a personal love of books while growing up in rural Tennessee, USA, where she saw firsthand the toll that illiteracy can take on families.

"I am thrilled about our partnership with Rotary International," she said in March. "Rotarians love kids as much as I do, so I truly believe we can do something extraordinary together to help even more children love to read and succeed."

Since its launch in 1996, the Imagination Library has provided more than 23 million books to preschoolers.

For more information:

• Read about Montréal, site of the 2010 RI Convention, in The Rotarian
• Learn more about featured speakers at the Montréal convention
• Register today for the 2010 RI Convention, which will be held from 20 to 23 June.