Rogers-Lowell Area News

WALMART and SAM’S CLUB Raise $5.3 Million for Arkansas Children's

Walmart and Sam’s Club Associates from Arkansas, Northern Louisiana, Eastern Texas and Oklahoma were celebrated as the top fundraising team for Children’s Miracle Network in the country, raising $5.3 million in 2016.

The funds raised through the annual in-store campaign benefit Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals. The funds raised stay in Arkansas and directly benefit children at Arkansas Children's Hospital and Arkansas Children’s Northwest.

Walmart and Sam’s Club kicked off their 30th annual fundraising campaign for Children’s Miracle Network on Thursday, September 21 and will run through Sunday, October 29. Proceeds from campaign will benefit Arkansas Children’s Northwest and Arkansas Children’s Hospital.

“We are grateful to Walmart and Sam’s Club for their continued commitment to Arkansas Children’s,” says Fred Scarborough, chief development officer for Arkansas Children’s and president of Arkansas Children’s Foundation. “This year marks a 30-year, transformational philanthropic relationship with Walmart, Sam’s Club and Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals. Together, nearly $1 billion has been raised to provide pediatric healthcare for children. We are thankful for Walmart and Sam’s Club for their ongoing support of making Arkansas a safer and healthier state for children.”

Walmart and Sam’s Club is the largest national sponsor for Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals. Funds at the local level are raised $1 at a time in grassroots efforts, spearheaded by associates and supported by members of the community. Children’s Miracle Network funds raised in Arkansas, North Louisiana, Eastern Texas and Oklahoma benefit Arkansas Children’s Hospital.

Each year, Arkansas Children’s hosts a Miracle Day celebration honoring Walmart and Sam’s Club associates from around the region. Awards were presented to individual associates and teams for their historic fundraising efforts.

“The long-term commitment that Walmart and Sam’s Club have made to pediatric healthcare and specifically to the children in Arkansas literally saves and changes lives,” says Ashlie Hilbun, vice president of philanthropy for Arkansas Children’s Foundation. “Our partnership will now help advance initiatives across the state as well as help fund Arkansas Children’s Northwest, opening in January 2018. At every turn, Walmart and Sam’s Club help us deliver on the promise of a healthier tomorrow and we are endlessly grateful.”

The following awards were presented at the ACH 2017 Miracle Day:

Top Fundraising Associate Awards:
Western Region Associate of the Year
#380 - Marsha Button, Waldron, AR

Eastern Region Associate of the Year
#36 – Lee Partee, Paragould, AR

Southern Region Associate of the Year
#530 – Thorin Brawley, El Dorado, AR

Northern Region Associate of the Year
Regan Schooler, Private Brands - Home Office

Central Region Associate of the Year
#8266- Debbie Scott, North Little Rock

Top Fundraising Sam’s Club Centers
1. #4825 - Hot Springs
2. #8295 - Texarkana
3. #8266 - North Little Rock

Top Fundraising Distribution/Transportation Centers
1. #8098 - Bentonville
2. #6094 - Bentonville
3. #6801- Bentonville

Top Fundraising Walmart Centers
1. #380 - Waldron
2. #57 - Walnut Ridge
3. #289 - McGehee

Top Fundraising Walmart Neighborhood Markets
1. #4579 - Fort Smith
2. #4371 - Texarkana
3. #6975 - Cabot

Top Fundraising Walmart Supercenters
1. #4460 - North Little Rock
2. #1065 - Hope
3. #58 - Russellville
4. #36 - Paragould
5. #167-Crossett

Top Fundraising Home Office
1. #9050 - Walmart Technology
2. #8027- Walmart Softlines
3. Walmart Private Brands


Arkansas Children’s Hospital (ACH) is the only pediatric medical center in Arkansas and one of the largest in the United States serving children from birth to age 21. Over the past century, ACH has grown from a small orphanage in Little Rock to a statewide network of care that includes an expansive pediatric teaching hospital and research institute, as well as regional clinics in several counties. ACH also reaches children across the state and nation through a range of telemedicine capabilities that ensures every child has access to the best care available, regardless of location or resources. The hospital’s campus in Little Rock spans 36 city blocks and houses 336 beds, a staff of 500 physicians, 80 residents in pediatrics and pediatric specialties and more than 4,000 employees. A campus under development in northwest Arkansas will bring 233,613 square feet of inpatient beds, clinic rooms and diagnostic services to children in that region of the state. A private nonprofit, ACH boasts an internationally renowned reputation for medical breakthroughs and intensive treatments, unique surgical procedures and forward-thinking research — all dedicated to fulfilling its mission of championing children by making them better today and healthier tomorrow. For more info, visit archildrens.org.

Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals® raises funds and awareness for 170 member hospitals that provide 32 million treatments each year to kids across the U.S. and Canada. Donations stay local to fund critical treatments and healthcare services, pediatric medical equipment and charitable care. Since 1983, Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals has raised more than $5 billion, most of it $1 at a time through the charity's Miracle Balloon icon. Its various fundraising partners and programs support the nonprofit's mission to save and improve the lives of as many children as possible