The Aaron Webster Scholarship Fund
KEEPING RECREATION ACCESSIBLE
2026 SCHOLARSHIP IMPACT
55+
SCHOLARSHIPS AWARDED
$41,798
SCHOLARSHIP DOLLARS AWAREDED
12+
DIFFERENT ACTIVITIES
WHAT WE DO...
COACHES TRAINING
We help offset the costs of ensuring that the coaches working with your children receive training to prepare them for the season.
REGISTRATION ASSISTANCE
We provide essential financial assistance that helps families cover costs associated with youth sports, ensuring that no child is left out.
UNIFORM ASSISTANCE
Your child needs to be sent onto the field with the proper gear as well (such as soccer cleats).
MEMBERSHIP ASSISTANCE
We help to ensure that membership and wellness activities remain accessible to all ages.
THE AARON WEBSTER SCHOLARSHIP FUND
Rogers Recreation Association is committed to providing comprehensive support for young athletes, helping them thrive both in sports and life.
WHO AARON WAS
Aaron Webster lived more in his 20 years than most people live in their entire lives. He was a University of Arkansas student, a friend, a devoted fiancé, and above all, someone who couldn't stand to watch others suffer.
Those who knew him remember Aaron as a light in the room, someone with a quick smile, an infectious laugh, and an unshakeable commitment to helping others. His compassion wasn't limited to grand gestures; it lived in the everyday moments where he chose kindness over indifference.
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"He was just like a light coming into a room. We couldn't wait for him to come over."
- Heather's mother
AARON'S CHARACTER
Aaron's life was defined by his values. Even before graduating high school, he showed a maturity and selflessness that set him apart.
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✓ Compassion: He allowed a homeless man he met to live in his apartment while he rebuilt his life.
✓ Intervention: When he saw two men fighting on the sidewalk with their children watching, he stopped to help them resolve their conflict peacefully.
✓ Generosity: He bought a skateboard for a boy whose parents couldn't afford one and helped children in every way he could.
✓ Service: He worked as a counselor at the Rogers Activity Center and as a nanny, pouring his heart into every role.
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"He always joked that it was going to make him a really good dad."
Heather Buttram
A GIFT THAT CONTINUES
On August 5, 2009, just a month before his accident, Aaron proposed to Heather Buttram on the dock behind his family home. He was excited, joyful, and full of plans for their future together.
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During that brief month of engagement, they made memories and promises, never knowing how little time they would have. Heather said it best: "I didn't ever feel like I left anything out. He knew how much I loved him and I know he really loved me."
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On September 5, 2009, at 1 a.m. on Labor Day morning, Aaron flipped his Jeep on Bellview Road in Rogers while trying to yield to an oncoming car. After 36 hours at Washington Regional Hospital, surrounded by his family and his fiancée, Aaron died from severe head trauma.
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His generosity didn't end there. Every usable part of Aaron's body was donated to help others live longer, healthier lives.
"When you die, all you have left is what you did and who you helped, all the material stuff goes away. You leave everything behind, and you just hope that it's all good."
Heather Buttram
START OF THE AARON WEBSTER SCHOLARSHIP FUND
Instead of being consumed by grief, Aaron's family and fiancée chose to celebrate his life by continuing his work. They established the Aaron Webster Scholarship Fund at the Rogers Activity Center, where Aaron worked as a counselor.
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Supporting the kids Aaron cared for so deeply. This fund ensures that his spirit of service, compassion, and generosity lives on in the lives he touched and in the generations of young people he would have inspired.
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Heather herself traveled to India to work in an orphanage in New Delhi for three months, continuing Aaron's legacy of service. "By helping other people, I'll receive some healing, too," she said. "In a way, it's my last thing for Aaron, you know, until I die."
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"In many ways, his death really did sum up his life. He left so many treasures in so many people's lives—it's just hard to feel like this was all for nothing."
Teena Webster, Aaron's mother
OUR COMMUNITY PARTNERS
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