Trimble to receive Jack White Leadership award

Melody Trimble, the former CEO of Sparks Health System, has been named the recipient of the Jack White Leadership Fort Smith award.

The award for Trimble and six other community leadership awards will be presented at the Alumni Association’s annual Commencement and Leadership Awards Ceremony scheduled for 6 p.m., May 2, at the Reynolds Conference Center on the University of Arkansas at Fort Smith campus. The public is invited. Link here for more information and to order tickets.

The Jack White Leadership Fort Smith Award is given annually to an individual whose leadership has meaningfully improved the quality of life in Fort Smith by contributing time and energy in a multitude of ways for the betterment of our city, demonstrating vision, commitment and courage to achieve positive results while also displaying characteristics such as honesty, moral strength and compassion.

Trimble, who no longer works in the Fort Smith area, joined Sparks in the fall of 2009, after the hospital was purchased by Naples, Fla.-based Health Management Associates in a $138-million deal that closed Nov. 30, 2009.

In January, HMA officials promoted Trimble to president of the company’s Southern and Western Group, which includes 26 hospitals in seven states. The seven-state region is Alabama, Arkansas, Mississippi, Missouri, Oklahoma, Texas and Washington.

During her three years in Fort Smith and Van Buren, Trimble improved her systems’ health care services in almost every aspect, from recruitment to investment to quality to profit, according to the Leadership Fort Smith statement.

Trimble received several prestigious awards, provided hundreds of thousands of dollars in community sponsorships and donations, volunteered for several local and state-wide organizations and was an active member of her church, all while displaying almost legendary compassion for anyone she encountered.

The other community award winners are:
Business/Industry
Jason Green, vice president-human resources, Baldor Electric Company

Education
Dr. Jo Alice Blondin, chancellor, Arkansas Tech University-Ozark Campus

Government
The Honorable Mark Hewett – Circuit Judge, 12th Judicial District

Non-Profit
Linda Kaufenberg, executive director, Single Parent Scholarship Fund of Crawford, Franklin & Sebastian Counties

Healthcare
Dr. Sandra Johnson, Johnson Dermatology Clinic

Religion
Dr. Dale Thompson, pastor, First Baptist Church of Fort Smith