$250,000 gift to build butterfly garden at Arkansas Children’s Northwest

Businessman Aaron Marshall and his wife Jaye T. will give $250,000 toward the construction of Arkansas Children’s Northwest. The gift will celebrate the life of Aaron’s mother, Genola R. Marshall, with a butterfly garden on the grounds surrounding the 233,613-square-foot pediatric hospital under construction west of Interstate 49 in Springdale. When he was 18 months old, Aaron Marshall received open-heart surgery in a Los Angeles pediatric hospital “to correct a congenital heart defect,” according to a news release. “Philanthropy provided the Marshall family access to the lifesaving care Aaron needed to repair his heart.”

Aaron Marshall is president and chief executive officer for Springdale-based BCS, which provides retail infrastructure electronic repair and refurbishing, logistics, warehousing and project management. “With my personal connection to the lifesaving care provided by a children’s hospital, it’s important to me and my family to have care close to home and Arkansas Children’s Northwest will provide access to pediatric healthcare to all children in the region,” Marshall said. “Being a parent of three healthy children, I have a better understanding of the sacrifices my parents went through to ensure I received quality care. I wanted to give back in a way that would honor my parents.”

The Genola R. Marshall butterfly garden will be one of the features included in the “37-acre park-like campus,” the release shows. The Karen and Darren Horton Outdoor Dining Terrace, the Amelia Faulk Labyrinth and Natural Trail and the Barbara and Randal Tyson Garden are other features that will be built on the campus. “My mother was very strong in her faith and blue butterflies were a special sign to her in the last few months of her life,” Aaron Marshall said.

Fred Scarborough, chief development officer for Arkansas Children’s, said he was “grateful to the Marshall family. Their heartfelt gift will provide joy and beauty as Arkansas Children’s Northwest transforms the delivery of pediatric healthcare in the region.”