SPRINGDALE -- Philanthropist Pat Walker died Saturday at age 97 surrounded by family members in her home.
Community members described the mother of two, grandmother of seven and great-grandmother of 15 as gracious, kind and unassuming.
Pat Walker and her husband, Willard, were the embodiment of what makes a community great, Springdale School District Superintendent Jim Rollins said. Walker Elementary School is named after them, and Springdale High School is home to the Pat Walker Theater and the Willard Walker Field House.
"They are the greatest examples of givers one might imagine," Rollins said.
Rollins said it was an honor to go to the Walker home, sit at the kitchen table and talk about opportunities to give back and strengthen the community.
"They always said to me when we were talking about school initiatives, 'We just want to help,'" Rollins said. "They were always thinking about how they could give back."
Pat Walker was born in Boise, Idaho, and raised in Tulsa. After graduating from high school, she and her mother moved to Coffeyville, Kan., where she met Willard.
The couple lived in several places before settling in Springdale to raise their two children, Johnny Mike Walker and Patricia Walker, according to a news release from the Willard and Pat Walker Charitable Foundation.
Willard Walker, who spent much of his life working in retail, was selected in 1959 by Sam Walton to manage Walton's Five and Dime Store in Fayetteville. He later became a major stockholder in Wal-Mart.
In 1986, the Walkers formed the Willard and Pat Walker Charitable Foundation and made the decision together to focus on health care and education in their community and state, according to the foundation.
The Walkers were married 61 years when Willard Walker died in February 2003 at age 81.
Pat Walker's legacy will live on through her family and the thousands of others she called friends, her family said in a statement.
"We have all been blessed to have such an amazing leader for our family," the family said. "She was the most loving, graceful and selfless woman we've ever known."
Pat Walker was a lifetime board member for the Winthrop P. Rockefeller Cancer Institute, an active member of Spring Creek Fellowship of Springdale and maintained an active role in the Walker Foundation, according to the foundation.
Many institutions and programs are named for Pat Walker. They include the Pat Walker Health Center at the University of Arkansas and the Pat Walker Teacher Education Program at the University of the Ozarks. The Pat Walker Center for Seniors at Washington Regional Medical Center in Fayetteville was opened in April 2008, and Arkansas Children's Hospital named the Pat Walker Neonatal Intensive Care Unit in her honor in 2010.
"She was just so kind and gracious," said Tim Hudson of Fayetteville, who got to know the Walkers through his 20-year career as a fundraiser in health care. "I hope we continue to produce people who have that compassionate spirit and unassuming nature."
Pat Walker also was a loyal Arkansas Razorbacks fan and enjoyed athletics, especially football, baseball and basketball games, and gymnastics.
"This is a great loss for Arkansas, as Pat Walker and her family have made such an impact in so many aspects of the state, both in the business world and in their philanthropic contributions," University of Arkansas System President Donald Bobbitt said. "She will be deeply missed."
State Desk on 09/04/2016