FAYETTEVILLE — At the 21st annual Summer Garden Party, every dollar that is donated counts double.
In December, the Washington Regional Foundation received a $750,000 challenge grant from the Willard and Pat Walker Charitable Foundation. The challenge: If the Washington Regional Foundation could raise $750,000 on its own within three years, the Walker foundation would match it.
Less than a year later, the Washington Regional Foundation is on the verge of reaching that goal. It has raised $700,000, and hopes to raise the remaining $50,000 at the Summer Garden Party, which is put on by the Friends of Washington Regional Hospice.
The event is 7 p.m. Saturday in Fayetteville. Tickets are $75, and more than 600 people are expected to attend.
“Everyone who comes to this event, everyone who makes a gift, every oneof their dollars will be matched dollar for dollar by the Walker foundation,” says Woody Bassett of Fayetteville. “I’m optimistic we’ll be able to secure that [$50,000] through the gifts from this garden party.”
Bassett’s involvement with Washington Regional goes back to the late 1990s. He has been a member of the Washington Regional Foundation’s board of directors for more than a decade, is on the boards of the Washington Regional Medical System and Washington Regional Medical Center, and recently joined the Washington Regional Hospice Advisory board.
His family became deeply connected to Washington Regional Hospice in the weeks leading up to the death of Bassett’s father, Bill, in January 2006. Bill Bassett was in hospice during his final weeks, and the care the staff gave him - and his surviving family members - still resonates with his son today.
“They were very helpful,” WoodyBassett says. “They’re so compassionate, they’re so skilled at what they do. They’re very attentive to the needs of the family, and obviously the patient.”
Bill Bassett was able to spend his final weeks at his home, which he had lived in for close to 40 years. Those who are cared for by Washington Regional Hospice often live out their last days at home, but today, there is another option for patients and their families.
On Oct. 18, the Willard Walker Hospice Home opened on the Washington Regional Medical Center campus. The hospice home cost approximately $5 million, aided in large part by a $2 million contribution from the Walker foundation.
Previously, Washington Regional’s hospice was a section of the hospital labeled as such. Woody Bassett and Debbie Walker, executive director of the Walker foundation, co-chaired the fundraising campaign, “The GreatestGift,” which led to the building of the new hospice home. Approximately 1,100 gifts from people in Northwest Arkansas were given to facilitate its construction.
“We needed the help of the community to build that hospice home,” Bassett says. “We’re very proud of this hospice home we’ve built, and we’re also very grateful to Willard and Pat Walker Foundation. They gave us huge gifts.”
The Garden Party, “Southern Soiree,” will take place at the Fayetteville home of Tommy and Sylvia Boyer, in the home’s sizable, tiered backyard. Tickets include food and beverages, live and silent auctions and performances by two musical acts - The Cate Brothers Band, and JeffFox, with special guest Jed Clampit.
Attire for the Garden Party is “summer chic,” and all white is suggested for attendees. The event is scheduled tolast until 11 p.m.
For more information about the Washington Regional HospiceSummer Garden Party, call (479) 444-9888 or visit
hospicegarden party.org
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Northwest Profile, Pages 31 on 06/10/2012