By Marta Rose-Thorpe
For years Jimy Thorpe had felt the urge to give back. A veteran, Jimy had served as a young man in the U.S. Army for eight years and had always held the highest regard for the men and women who serve our country and keep us safe. This group also includes first responders – the men and women who keep our communities safe. So how would he give back? In 2014, he created the tagline “Vets Helping Vets” – later elevated to “Vets Helping Vets & First Responders” – and decided to start giving what he had to give: HVAC units. Jimy owns A Superior Air Conditioning Company, a local business he launched in 2003.
In the beginning, Jimy and his team decided to give away eight units per year. Vets and first responders were encouraged to apply online at ASuperiorAC.com; the giveaway was open to all who have served in the Army, Navy, Air Force, Marines, Coast Guard, and all first responders including EMT/Medics, Police, Sheriffs and Fire Fighters. American Legion Post 392 in Panama City met and voted on all submissions each quarter, selecting one veteran in need and one first responder in need to be awarded the units.
In 2015 the giveaway began taking the form of a quarterly appreciation lunch at Harley-Davidson of Panama City Beach. Local musician Neal James opened the lunches with the National Anthem and play background music while Texas Roadhouse catered. The first event hosted around 40 guests and several local businesses co-sponsored. The next lunch brought in a few more guests and sponsors, and the Vet Center and other veteran-related organizations joined in. As the word-of-mouth continued, the guest list grew. By Fall 2017 the event moved to Texas Roadhouse; today this appreciation lunch still takes place, now maxing out the restaurant at 380+ guests.
But Jimy still wanted to reach and help more veterans and first responders. In November 2019 Pastor Dave of Faith Assembly Church in Miramar Beach (affectionately known as “The Rock & Roll Church”) invited Jimy to launch a quarterly appreciation lunch there, thus reaching vets and first responders in the Walton/Okaloosa area. The appreciation lunch has taken place there ever since, slowly growing in attendance and giving away one HVAC unit per quarter, for a total of 12 HVAC units given away per year.
“I feel that giving back to veterans and first responders is like taking the time to help my father,” says Jimy, whose father served in the U.S. Marines. “It’s something that comes second nature; it’s instinctive and something that’s driven in me.”
The Winners’ Stories
Kelly D., a 911 Dispatcher, lives in her brother’s home in Fountain, Florida. Like so many, the home, which was built in the early 90s, sustained damages in Hurricane Michael and the old AC system hadn’t been reconnected to the house ever since the storm. In January 2021 Kelly received an email from work, telling her about the A Superior HVAC Giveaway. She applied online, writing, “It’s not really me that deserves to win, it’s my brother. He is in the Coast Guard and is extremely selfless. He provided me with a place to stay when Covid changed our lives. He is currently remodeling the place to give me a nice place to live. He has a servant’s heart.” On February 23, 2021 the A Superior team installed a new unit at Kelly’s brother’s home. She was extremely thankful.
Jerry Lee served four years in the U.S. Navy as an E3 fireman and retired in 2008; his wife was working in the nursing field when their life took an unexpected turn. “My daughter passed away, and we adopted my two grandchildren – one was only five months and the other one was just over a year old,” he said. “Even though we wouldn’t change our situation for anything,” Jerry continued, “we have traded in our golden years to raise two more children.”
Due to the new circumstances, his wife had to quit her job to help raise the girls who are now 12 and 13 years old. “I have now buried two of my own children and my wife lost her son almost two years ago, and that pretty much depleted any savings we had.” With an HVAC unit approximately 10 years old, they had been paying up to $500 every year for repairs and freon. “I bet I have asked ten different AC companies why my old unit would only work on emergency heat,” said Sherri, “and it took a young man just recently out of school, Nate, to finally give us the answer. Nate, Shannon, and Thomas were very helpful, and we just can’t thank y’all enough!” When the A Superior team told Sherri that she could apply online for the HVAC Giveaway, she did, and she and Jerry were announced as winners at the February 9 appreciation lunch in Miramar Beach.
