Dothan Eagle readers donate almost 250 fans

The Dothan branch of the Salvation Army will give out about 240 fans to area residents thanks to Dothan Eagle readers who pitched in to help.

A joint fan drive between the Dothan Eagle and Salvation Army, which ran from June 16 to June 27, was the first such event organized by the Eagle in the last nine years.

“This year, with it being so hot, we got to thinking about how miserable people must be without air conditioning this summer,” Dothan Eagle Managing Editor Ken Tuck said. “I’m glad we can help people in need. It would be really miserable to not have at least a fan blowing some air on you.”

Through a program called Friendly Caller, the Salvation Army plans to hand out many of the fans to residents who are shut-ins.

“With that program, we are in contact with people who are shut-ins. Some of these people don’t have enough money to have running air conditioning during the summertime,” said Lt. Jonathan Howell, the new commander of the local Salvation Army. “A big portion of these fans we are going to hand-deliver them to these shut-ins.”

The rest of the fans will be handed out at the social services center.

“We run a social services center out of the Salvation Army. People come to us all the time who are disfortunated and don’t have money to pay rent or utilities. With that, air condition is a luxury they don’t have,” Howell said. “We are going to be able to give out fans to people who come in and are unable to cool their house with air conditioning.”

According to Tuck, the number of fans collected during the drive came as a surprise.

“Nine years ago, we got about 60 to come in,” Tuck said. “We were hoping to hit maybe 100. The response from the community was overwhelming. We thank everybody for bringing in so many fans.”

Howell thanked the Eagle and the community for the drive.

“We were blown away,” he said. “There are a lot of fans here. It’s going to be a big help. A lot of times, it’s not just one guy living there, it’s families of three or four children. Now, they can come home to a house with a fan in it and be cooled down.”

Tuck said the Eagle worked with the Salvation Army to make sure the fans were properly distributed.

“I’d like to thank the Salvation Army. It’s great to connect with an organization like that so we know the fans are going to people who need them,” Tuck said.

Howell said those who would still like to help out can always donate fans and cooling equipment to the Salvation Army office at 1007 S. Bell St. from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. on weekdays.