SPRINGDALE — Vicki and Gary Jech and their family recently donated $250,000 to Arkansas Children’s Northwest.
The family gift honors the Jech’s eight grandchildren and the care their first granddaughter, Peyton Keeling, received at Arkansas Children’s Hospital. Peyton underwent two heart surgeries before turning 5 years old. Throughout the years, Peyton also has received care from the Autism Multispecialty Clinic at the hospital.
“Making this contribution to Arkansas Children’s Northwest is something we care deeply about,” Gary Jech, president of Farris Insurance Agency, said in a release. “Because of the life-saving care Peyton received at Arkansas Children’s Hospital, our family is proud to help provide care close to home for so many other families in the region.”
Arkansas Children’s Northwest will name a waiting area in the Jech’s name. The area will be used for patients who need a diagnostic tests, including EEG, EKG and echocardiograms.
The hospital is set to open in January and will be the region’s first comprehensive pediatric healthcare center. It will include:
• 24 inpatient beds to care for children requiring overnight stays
• 24-hour pediatric emergency department
• Pediatric surgery unit with five operating rooms
• An outpatient clinic with 30 exam rooms supporting more than 20 subspecialty areas, and a general pediatric clinic
• A full range of ancillary and diagnostic services, child-life and pastoral care
• Outdoor gardens, nature trails and interactive features designed for children
• A helipad and refueling station supporting Angel One, a pediatric intensive care transport service
Arkansas Children’s Northwest is being built on 37 acres of land donated by Robin and Gary George, Cathy and David Evans and their families. The campus is along Interstate 49 between Don Tyson Parkway and U.S. 412, across from Arvest Ballpark. The project is expected to cost $427.7 million in construction, technology, equipment and operating expenses over the next five years, and will create 250 new jobs.
Arkansas Children’s Northwest is being designed by Polk Stanley Wilcox Architects of Fayetteville and Little Rock, and FKP Architects of Houston. Nabholz Construction is overseeing construction.