Dinners to raise funds for ‘Imagination Library’

by Dennis Dalman

Tickets are now on sale for an annual United Way of Central Minnesota event called “Imagination Library Progressive Dinner” during which traveling diners enjoy a four-course meal and refreshments at homes in Sartell and St. Cloud.

The St. Cloud one will take place from 4-10 p.m. Saturday, April 20; the Sartell one will happen from 4-10 p.m. Saturday, April 27.

The cost is $150 per person. For tickets, call 320-223-7995.

Founded in 1995 by famed singer Dolly Parton, Imagination Library instills a love of reading in children. It does so by providing a free, age-appropriate story book once every month to each participating child ages birth to 5. The books are available to children/families who live in United Way’s service area in central Minnesota.

The United Way in this area is committed to funding at least 7,000 books each month to children enrolled in the program. The cost is borne entirely by donations from families, individuals, businesses, corporations, grants and fundraising (including the Progressive Dinner events that are the subject of this story).

To sign up a child for Imagination Library’s free-books program, visit United Way’s webpage at www.unitedwayhelps.org.

Here’s how a progressive dinner works:

It starts by diners gathering at a reception home (in St. Cloud or Sartell) for appetizers and drinks. After a short program and a relaxing sociable time, participants travel to the next home for a first-course dinner, then on to another home for a second-course serving and finally back to that first home for dessert.

All courses are prepared by local topnotch chefs. There will be eight progressive dinner events in St. Cloud and 10 of them in Sartell. What’s unique about the program is that each dinner event will have a fun, intriguing “theme.” For example, one of Sartell’s 10 events is dubbed “Prohibition Kitchen,” which is billed as: “Step back in time to the era of Prohibition in Stearns County, where hidden speakeasies and savory delights await. Savor the flavors of the past with hearty Midwestern cuisine, moonshine cocktails and jazz music, promising an evening of nostalgia and revelry.”

One of the eight events in St. Cloud is called “A Taste of Paris.” Diners will “embark on a gastronomic journey through the enchanted streets of Paris where guests will indulge in exquisite French cuisine, capturing the essence of the City of Light in every bite.”

To learn more about all of the themes of the dinner events, visit unitedwayhelps.org/ilpd. Then scroll down to find a list of the theme dinners.