UAMS Northwest Dedicates Garden in Memory of Pharmacy Student

By Nate Hinkel

 A bench honoring Josh Neal was placed in the new garden space at UAMS Northwest.

Dec. 22, 2011 | A once sparse and bland outdoor space on the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences (UAMS) Northwest campus has been transformed into a vibrant and welcoming oasis in memory of a former student.

Though he never officially attended a class there, Josh Neal, of Springdale, was set to be a part of the inaugural class of third-year students attending the UAMS Northwest College of Pharmacy this fall. His dream of becoming a pharmacist was cut short when he died from a seizure disorder in the fall of 2010.

The space was dedicated at a Nov. 3 ceremony.

“It’s been an honor to watch our students come together and pay tribute to a classmate with this project,” said Scott Warmack, Pharm.D., associate dean of the College of Pharmacy at UAMS Northwest. “It’s a really neat thing to have this beautiful space serve as a memorial to not only Josh and his family, but to also represent how his classmates and friends bonded to pay tribute.”

In his honor, more than a dozen students, friends, family and faculty spent a hot, humid day in July constructing the memorial garden in a 10-by-30-foot outdoor space on the north side of the UAMS Northwest campus facing the Veteran’s Administration Hospital. Neal was an avid gardener, so paying tribute with green thumbs was a natural fit.

“He was sports, he was gardening, and he was biology,” said Neal’s wife, Laura. “I mean, that was him in a nutshell.”

Laura Neal spoke at the ceremony alongside Stephanie Gardner, Ed.D., Pharm.D., dean of the UAMS College of Pharmacy, Warmack and third-year pharmacy student Ryan Harness. Neal’s parents, Debbie and Jeff Neal, also attended.

Leslie Hitt, student affairs and faculty development specialist for UAMS Northwest, said Parker Trumann, a local landscaper, volunteered countless hours recommending and directing the implementation of plants, trees and flowers that will best fit the space and environment. The group also put in a watering system beneath the dirt. The garden includes two tables with chairs, four crape myrtles, a maple tree, hydrangeas, azaleas, boxwoods, cone flowers, lamb’s ears and ivy. The space also includes a bench inscribed with Neal’s name.