Parker family donates $2 million to Arkansas Children’s Hospital 

HealthcareLatest NewsNortheast Arkansas

by Talk Business & Politics staff ([email protected]) ago 0 views 

Arkansas Children's campus in Little Rock.

Arkansas Children’s Hospital has received a $2 million donation from Lynn and Don Parker and their children to help fund the ACH expansion project. The Jonesboro-based family has also committed a $1 million gift to the ACH Jonesboro Clinic. This is the family’s second $1 million gift to the clinic. They also gave $1 million in 2019.

ACH is in the midst of a $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.”

“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 said their investment in child health will make an 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.”