SPRINGDALE -- Former Wal-Mart Stores Inc. executive, Northwest Arkansas business leader and John Brown University benefactor Don Soderquist died Thursday. He was 82.
"Dad passed away today due to complications from heart surgery earlier this week," Wendy Soderquist Togami, his daughter, wrote in an email. "We are grieving with all of you at this news, and yet with our sad hearts, rejoicing that he is busy with his next assignment in heaven."
She wrote that funeral arrangements would be decided in the coming days.
Former state Rep. Donna Hutchinson, R-Bella Vista, said she grew close to Soderquist and his family through Fellowship Bible Church, where he led a community group for years.
"I just can't believe it. I just can't imagine the world without him," she said. "He was a huge influence in Northwest Arkansas and beyond."
Hutchinson said Soderquist's surgery earlier in the week was at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minn., and he was surrounded by family.
Soderquist spent 22 years with Wal-Mart, starting in 1980 as executive vice president of administration and distribution. He became chief operating officer and vice chairman in 1988, stepping down from those posts in 2000 and officially retiring in 2002.
His days after retirement were spent at The Soderquist Center, founded in his honor by John Brown University in Siloam Springs in 1998. He was the leadership development center's founding executive.
"We are deeply saddened to share that Don Soderquist passed away on Thursday morning from complications related to heart surgery," Soderquist Leadership CEO Chuck Hyde wrote in a post on the organization's online blog. "Those who knew Don personally know that he loved God and his wife, Jo. He was so proud of each of his children and their families. It was clear to see what was most important in his life: His faith and his family. He modeled that so well.
"He had a unique ability to make others feel valued through his genuine interest in them as people. His driving motivation 'to impact people in a positive way,' I believe, is the mark he left on Wal-Mart and why Soderquist Leadership exists today.
"We will miss him terribly, but we know his expectations for us. We are blessed to do good work and will carry that forward to impact people and honor his legacy."
In a letter to the JBU community, posted on the university's web site, JBU president Chip Pollard and his wife Carey wrote that Soderquist had been part of JBU's community for nearly 35 years.
He served on the board of trustees from 1982-2009 and was chairman of the board from 1991 to 2002. He was elected trustee emeritus in 2009 and consistently came to board meetings, Pollard wrote.
Since it's founding in 1998, the Soderquist Leadership Center has served more than 50,000 people, Pollard wrote.
"Don was always moved by the way in which the programs at Soderquist Leadership and the education at JBU changed people's lives, and he gave generously of his time, his wisdom, and his resources to encourage that life transformation," Pollard wrote.
Pollard noted that Soderquist was his uncle and that the Soderquist and Pollard families grew up together for the first 18 years of his life.
"One of my earliest memories, probably when I was 4 or 5, was of a Bible memory contest organized by my Uncle Don in our church basement," Pollard wrote. "He has been encouraging my spiritual life ever since, and it has been one of the great joys of our lives that God brought us to Arkansas over 12 years ago, and gave me the chance to be with him, and my Aunt Jo and the entire family. Carey and I will miss him dearly, and am grateful for the Godly heritage of my extended family."
Soderquist was inducted into the Arkansas Business Hall of Fame in 2010.
"Our main objective is to (affect) the lives of people in a very positive way," Soderquist said at the time. "My daughter says we have a biased opinion about leadership, and (she) means it's very heavily slanted toward building your business on a foundation of values. That's what Wal-Mart was."
He and his wife, Jo, were also active in the nonprofit community, receiving many honors, including the Dick Trammel Good Neighbor Award from the Rogers-Lowell Area Chamber of Commerce in 2009 and the Advocate for Innocence Award for Outstanding Community Partner from the Children's Advocacy Center of Benton County last year.
General News on 07/24/2016