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💨 Life-saving comfort: A retired paramedic’s family with serious medical needs now has a reliable air conditioning system.
🧡 Community-powered generosity: A Shalimar mother was nominated by 12 people and returned the kindness with a home-cooked meal.
🛠️ Business with a mission: Mills Heating & Air’s program donates high-efficiency HVAC systems at no profit to those in need.
SHALIMAR — A broken air conditioner in the Florida heat isn’t just an inconvenience — it can be a health emergency. For two local families, it was also an overwhelming financial burden.
But thanks to a local HVAC company, both households now have a renewed sense of comfort, safety, and hope.
As part of its fourth annual “Neighbor in Need” summer giveaway, Mills Heating & Air, in partnership with equipment supplier Air Engineers, donated two high-efficiency HVAC systems to local families facing personal and medical hardships.
The initiative is part of the company’s broader “Do What’s Right” effort to give back across Okaloosa, Walton, and Bay counties.
Billy Welch, a retired paramedic living in Crestview, was behind the wheel delivering groceries when he received the life-changing phone call.
“I was actually out doing my Spark deliveries when you guys called and told me we were one of the winners,” Welch recalled. “I was blown away.”
Welch spent over 30 years in emergency medical services. But today, he’s back at work delivering food — not because he wants to, but because he needs to. Welch’s wife has Addison’s disease, a life-threatening endocrine disorder in which the adrenal glands fail to produce cortisol, a hormone essential for managing stress and regulating the body’s response to heat. Without daily medication and careful climate control, she could slip into adrenal crisis, a potentially fatal condition.
“She can’t handle heat or sudden temperature changes,” Welch explained. “It can literally kill her.”
On top of that, their daughter — a childhood cancer survivor—has been diagnosed with Gardner syndrome. This rare and terminal genetic disorder predisposes her to cancer and requires extensive management. She recently underwent major surgery to remove her entire colon.
Now, the family faces yet another medical battle: heart failure. Because of chemotherapy she received as a baby, Welch’s daughter suffers from left ventricular dysfunction, a condition that causes her heart rate to spike to dangerous levels — as high as 180 to 200 beats per minute. Her local doctors have referred her to the Mayo Clinic for further evaluation.
“We’re still trying to figure out what we’re going to do about that,” Welch said. “She has a follow-up at the Mayo Clinic now, because there’s only so much they can do for her here.”
Compounding the stress was an AC unit that couldn’t keep up — or stay running. The system leaked Freon and had to be refilled every few months just to function.
“We’d know it stopped working when it hit 83 degrees in the house first thing in the morning,” Welch said. “Sometimes I had to bother my neighbor at night or while he was at work just to get through another day.”
Receiving the new HVAC system, he said, was more than a convenience; it was peace of mind.
“This is a big, big relief,” Welch said. “With everything else we’re facing, it’s one less thing I have to worry about.”
Nikki Hatton, a corrections officer in Shalimar, is used to giving — not receiving. A single mother with adult children and a full-time caregiver for her elderly mother, Hatton said she was caught off guard when she found out she had been selected to receive a free HVAC system.
“It’s actually kind of surreal,” Hatton said. “I was already in the process with Mills to try and finance a new unit. Then my neighbor, my sister, a coworker — and I don’t even know who else — submitted nominations. I don’t know what they said, but I appreciate everything they did.”
According to Mills representatives, Hatton received 12 separate nominations, placing her among the most frequently submitted names during the eight-week entry period.
The home’s existing air conditioner was barely functioning. Hatton said the unit leaked regularly, froze up, and required frequent maintenance just to limp along.
“We had a pan underneath it to catch the leaking,” she said. “It would freeze up, and I had my little bottle of bleach to pour into the line and keep it running. Mills had already been out here to price a replacement, so they knew what we were dealing with.”
On the day she found out she’d been selected, Hatton was attending a class.
“I couldn’t scream like I wanted to,” she said. “Everything was in here,” she added, motioning to her chest. “The overwhelming joy made me a little nervous and shaky.”
Hatton said it’s always been in her nature to help others, which made receiving the gift both emotional and humbling.
“I love doing for people. It’s a little hard to receive,” she admitted. “But this was so needed, and I’m absolutely grateful.”
Beyond cooling the home, the new air conditioner brings peace of mind, especially for her mother, who spends most of her time indoors.
“My mom’s here all the time,” Hatton said. “And she’s the one who complains the most when it gets too hot. Now I won’t have to worry about her calling me saying, ‘It’s leaking again.'”
But Hatton didn’t let the gift go unreturned. In a heartfelt gesture of thanks, she and her mother prepared homemade food for the Mills installation team. Her mother baked a cake, and Hatton cooked two trays of lasagna — a first for the company.
“It was his birthday,” Hatton said of one of the owners, Marty White. “So they had something to take back to the office with them.”
“This is the first time someone’s ever cooked for us during a giveaway,” Marty said, smiling. “She’s wonderful.”
Mills Heating & Air co-owners Chris and Marty White launched the “Neighbor in Need” program four years ago. With donated systems from supplier Air Engineers, they’ve provided free HVAC systems to local families who need them most — and they do it without turning a profit.
“We could sell the units,” Marty said. “But instead, we choose to give them away. It’s the right thing to do.”
Chris emphasized the ripple effect these acts of service can have.
“If you haven’t started a program like this, I highly recommend it,” Chris said. “It helps the community, your employees will love it, and it sets you apart.”
The company has opened nominations for its Veterans Day HVAC giveaway, with one veteran to receive a free heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) system in November. Submissions will be accepted through millshvac.com.
Pro Communi Bono
St. Francis De Sales, Ora Pro Nobis!
