• John Brown University at Siloam Springs recently announced that its college of business has been renamed in honor of retired Wal-Mart Stores Inc. executive Don Soderquist. The university also announced a $2 million endowment for the Donald G. Soderquist College of Business, which includes a $1 million gift from the Soderquist Family Foundation and a $1 million matching gift by an anonymous donor.
• Mercy Hospital Hot Springs recently installed Siemens Espree 70cm Open Bore Ultrashort Magnetic Resonance Imaging equipment on the main campus in Hot Springs. The new MRI, installed at a cost of $1.18 million, replaced a 16-year-old Siemens unit and complements another Espree MRI unit already in place.
• The Toggery, the Little Rock children’s retailer, marked its 65th year in business with the recent expansion of its location at University Avenue and R Street in the Heights. The Toggery, which opened on Kavanaugh Boulevard in 1948, has occupied the same location in the Heights since 1962, but the recent expansion brought the total space to 6,000 SF. Phil and Penny Olinghouse have owned and operated the business for more than 30 years.
• Goodwin & Goodwin Inc., a Fort Smith construction company, was recently awarded a $1.27 million contract by the Fort Smith Board of Directors to address flooding in the city’s Meandering Way neighborhood. Construction began this month, and the 180-day contract anticipates completion in March.
• Citizens Bank of Batesville was recently recognized for 40 years of membership in the Independent Community Bankers of America, a national trade association of more than 7,000 community banks.
• Will French Farms of Perry received the Animal Welfare Approved organization’s certification for its pigs. The certification says the animals were “raised in accordance with the highest animal welfare standards in the U.S., using sustainable agriculture methods on an independent family farm.”
• Alliance Rubber Co. of Hot Springs is a nominee in Martha Stewart’s second annual American Made competition.
