PHOENIX, AZ — In the middle of the summer, Ben Ousley’s sickly air conditioning unit rattled its last breath. With the temperate reaching a scorching 100 degrees inside his house, the Army Veteran made a desperate call to Goettl Air Conditioning for help.
For over a year, the 74-year-old had been climbing on to his roof in an attempt to nurse his failing evaporative cooler. When the unit finally broke down, getting a replacement was out of Ousley’s reach; living on a limited income with a disability, he didn’t have the spare $7000 to get his unit replaced.
Ousley was forwarded to Goettl Chairman Dan Burke, a Navy Veteran himself, whom decided that Ousley was in dire need of help. Burke knew that excessive heat is a serious threat; according the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Heat stroke is the most serious heat-related illness, and older adults are prone to the risk of heat related illnesses. Older adults have a harder time adjusting to changes in temperature, and are more likely to have chronic medical conditions that alter the body’s response heat.
Despite being fully booked call volume reaching 1000 calls per day, Goettl Air Conditioning dispatched a technician to make an emergency visit to Ousley’s house to diagnose the state of his unit. The technician concluded that the cooler was irreparable; the unit’s motor had given out, and the cooler was so old that it had rusted away.
Due to the urgency of the situation, the following day, Goettl Air Conditioning donated the necessary parts and technicians Rick Burger and Eric Beckman, volunteered their time, to replace Ousley’s rusted out unit and with a new evaporative cooler. The total cost of the work done at Ousley’s house is an estimated $7000.
“Our technicians, Rick and Eric, were excited to get Ben some cooling before the weekend and did a great job” said Burke.
Ousley called Burke after the holidays to tell him he was now “cold“ in the house, and could not thank Goettl enough for helping an old Army veteran out.”