Lynn and Don Parker Family Donates Additional $2 Million Toward Arkansas Children’s Hospital Expansion

LITTLE ROCK, AR. (July 22, 2024) – Arkansas Children's is proud to announce a generous $2 million gift from Lynn and Don Parker and their children to the Arkansas Children’s Hospital (ACH) expansion project. The Jonesboro family is a long-standing supporter of Arkansas Children's and have, once again, demonstrated their commitment to the health and well-being of children.

In addition to this generous gift, the Parkers have committed a $1 million planned gift to the ACH Jonesboro Clinic, further enhancing the facility’s ability to provide exceptional care to children in the northeast Arkansas region. This is the family’s second $1 million gift to the ACH Jonesboro Clinic. They also gave $1 million in 2019.

The support from donors like the Parkers enables Arkansas Children's to build a new generation of care with its $318 million expansion project at both hospitals, announced in 2023. The plan will expand bed capacity, transform inpatient and outpatient surgical approaches with the addition of an ambulatory center, redesign clinical spaces to promote multidisciplinary care and create an inviting and accessible campus experience. With the Parker family donation, companies, individuals and organizations have donated $12.1 million toward the $253.2 million expansion project at ACH.

Arkansas Children’s served 180,000 children last year — more children than ever before,” said Marcy Doderer, FACHE, president and CEO of Arkansas Children’s. “Arkansas Children’s historic expansion will increase access to pediatric care, enhance exceptional outcomes for kids and elevate patient experience on both hospital campuses.”

Lynn Parker, a member of the Arkansas Children’s Foundation board since 2018, knows firsthand the power of philanthropy and the transformative impact giving has on Arkansas Children’s.

"Our family firmly believes every child deserves access to the best health care available," said Lynn Parker. "For more than a century, Arkansas Children's has been at the forefront of pediatric care for our state and the region. As a family, we are honored to add our names to the long list of supporters of this life-saving mission. We all benefit from the impact of generosity in our community. We see it every day in the lives of children and their families.”

Fred Scarborough, executive vice president and chief development officer at Arkansas Children's, expressed his gratitude to the Parker family for their generosity. He emphasized their investment in child health will make a timeless impact on the children of Arkansas and beyond.

“The Parkers have a long history of supporting Arkansas Children’s with gifts to pediatric care in northeast Arkansas, northwest Arkansas and regional efforts emanating from Little Rock,” Scarborough said. “Their volunteerism and philanthropy have helped sustain, strengthen and expand the advanced levels of medicine required for the children of Arkansas and beyond. We are thrilled to have their support for the most comprehensive expansion project in our 112-year history.”

From its founding as an orphanage in 1912 to becoming a nationally acclaimed health care system, Arkansas Children’s has remained steadfast in its commitment to being a champion for children. To learn more about the expansion, visit archildrens.org/expansion. To support Arkansas Children's growth, visit archildrens.org/donate or call 800-880-7491 today.

Planned gifts empower Arkansas Children’s donors to integrate charitable giving into their overall financial and  estate planning, maximizing their philanthropic impact while optimizing financial benefits. Supporting Arkansas Children’s with a future gift is a powerful way to ensure one's generosity endures and makes a lasting difference for the children of Arkansas and the region.

With a variety of options to choose from — whether it's a bequest in a will, a charitable trust or another giving vehicle — planned gifts can be tailored to accomplish a donor's specific needs and philanthropic goals. Learn more about supporting Arkansas Children’s expansion with a future gift at archildrens.org/giftplanning.

ABOUT ARKANSAS CHILDREN'S

Arkansas Children's is the only health care system in the state solely dedicated to caring for Arkansas' more than 700,000 children. The private, non-profit organization includes two pediatric hospitals, a pediatric research institute and USDA nutrition center, a philanthropic foundation, a nursery alliance, statewide clinics, and many education and outreach programs — all focused on fulfilling a promise to define and deliver unprecedented child health. Arkansas Children’s Hospital (ACH) is a 336-bed, Magnet-recognized facility in Little Rock operating the state’s only Level I pediatric trauma center; the state's only burn center; the state's only Level IV neonatal intensive care unit; the state's only pediatric intensive care unit; the state’s only pediatric surgery program with Level 1 verification from the American College of Surgeons (ACS); and the state's only nationally recognized pediatric transport program. Arkansas Children’s is nationally ranked by U.S. News & World Report in seven pediatric subspecialties (2023—2024): Cancer, Cardiology & Heart Surgery, Diabetes & Endocrinology, Nephrology, Orthopedics, Pulmonology & Lung Surgery and Urology. Arkansas Children’s Northwest (ACNW), the first and only pediatric hospital in the northwest Arkansas region, is a level IV pediatric trauma center. ACNW operates a 24-bed inpatient unit; a surgical unit with five operating rooms; outpatient clinics offering over 20 subspecialties; diagnostic services; imaging capabilities; occupational therapy services; and northwest Arkansas' only pediatric emergency department, equipped with 30 exam rooms. Generous philanthropic and volunteer engagement has sustained Arkansas Children's since it began as an orphanage in 1912, and today ensures the system can deliver on its promise of unprecedented child health. To learn more, visit archildrens.org.

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