NEWPORT NEWS, Va., July 12, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The Newport News Marriott at City Center is partnering with The DeGood Foundation to host a new fundraiser for Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library in Hampton Roads on September 22-23, 2023. The organization is hoping to raise $100,000 with this first-time event to support the sustainability and expansion of Dolly Parton's Imagination Library in Hampton Roads, placing more books into the hands of more local children. The event will allow over 5,000 new children to receive free, high-quality, age-appropriate books in the mail each month for one year.
The event, called Over The Edge, offers a unique experience in which participants raise money through pledges for the opportunity to rappel down a building, with all proceeds going to the foundation. The event will feature local VIPs and teams participating in roof-to-ground rappelling 150 feet down an outer wall of the 11-story Newport News Marriott, as their reward for each raising $1,000 or more to support The DeGood Foundation and its book-gifting program, Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library. The event also offers sponsorship options, including a “Toss Your Boss” sponsorship package, as well as numerous incentives and awards.
Mark Butcher, General Manager, said, “We are honored to partner with such an important foundation and support a cause that will significantly benefit the children and families in our community. And to have fun doing it!”
For more information or to register for this event, please visit Over the Edge for The DeGood Foundation.
More About the Newport News Marriott at City Center
The Newport News Marriott at City Center is located close to many popular destinations, including Huntington Ingalls Industries/Newport News Shipbuilding, Christopher Newport University, Ferguson Enterprises, Yorktown Beach, the Ferguson Center for the Arts, Fort Eustis, and Langley Air Force Base. Located in City Center at Oyster Point, the hotel is an ideal base for exploring the area on foot or by car. The hotel offers 256 amenity-packed guest rooms and nearly 25,000 square feet of elegant and dramatic meeting and conference facilities, offering full-service, on-site catering services. Guests can stay connected with complimentary high-speed Wi-Fi and ergonomic workstations in every room. Creative appetizers and hearty entrees are served for breakfast, lunch, and dinner in the hotel's restaurant, Kitchen 740. The fitness center offers cardio equipment and free weights and an indoor pool. For more information and reservations, visit www.marriott.com or call 757-873-9299.
The Newport News Marriott at City Center is managed by Crestline Hotels & Resorts, LLC, one of the nation's largest independent hospitality management companies. Crestline has a rapidly growing portfolio that currently includes more than 130 hotels in 30 states and the District of Columbia. For more information about Crestline, visit www.crestlinehotels.com.
| Media Contact: | Diane Fulton |
| Director of Sales and Marketing | |
| 757.310.5003 | |
| Diane.Fulton@crestlinehotels.com | |
About The DeGood Foundation
Founded by Kyle DeGood in 2017, The DeGood Foundation, a 501(c)3 non-profit organization, ensures that all children on the Virginia Peninsula have equitable access to positive early childhood experiences that nurture, grow, and inspire through programs such as Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library and Bags of Hope. Since 2019, the foundation has mailed over 60,000 books to children through Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library and has become the largest Imagination Library program in the state of Virginia, serving over 4,500 children each month. For more information, visit www.degoodfoundation.org, and connect with us on Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn.
| Media Contact: | Kyle DeGood |
| Founder & Executive Director | |
| (757) 574-0334 ext. 100 | |
| kyle@degoodfoundation.org | |
About Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library
Since launching in 1995, Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library has become the preeminent early childhood book-gifting program in the world. The flagship program of The Dollywood Foundation, a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization, has gifted over 200 million free books in the United States, Canada, United Kingdom, Australia, and The Republic of Ireland. The Imagination Library mails more than 2 million high-quality, age-appropriate books each month to enrolled children from birth to age five. Dolly envisioned creating a lifelong love of reading and inspiring children to dream more, learn more, care more and be more.
The impact of the program has been widely researched and results suggest positive increases in key early childhood literacy metrics. Penguin Random House is the exclusive publisher for Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library. For more information, please visit imaginationlibrary.com.
