The annual Pete Moore Automotive Team Senior Chill Out, a one-day donation drive for new air conditioners, fans and funds to help seniors beat the heat, will be held Friday, June 5 at the five area Lowe’s stores (Fairfield Drive, Airport Boulevard, and Nine Mile Road in Pensacola; Highway 98 in Gulf Breeze; and Highway 90 in Pace) from 6 am to 6 pm. The event is hosted by Council on Aging of West Florida in partnership with WEAR ABC 3, WFGX 35, Cat Country 98.7, NewsRadio 92.3, and Lowe’s Home Improvement stores. Community members and businesses are invited to join this effort and donate during the event. Council on Aging collects and distributes donated ACs and fans to vulnerable seniors, who experience dangerous health complications resulting from stifling summer heat. Monetary contributions are also appreciated and can be made at the event or any time online at SeniorChillOut.org.
According to the Federal Emergency Management Agency, extreme heat results in the highest annual number of deaths among all weather-related disasters. Those ages 65 and up are particularly susceptible to the adverse effects of excessive heat due to decreased ability to regulate body temperature, along with medical conditions and prescription medicines that can impair their ability to feel hot or even perspire. This can lead to dangerous conditions like heat exhaustion and heat stroke, which can be fatal.
“The need for air conditioners and fans is always massive throughout the hotter months,” said Council on Aging marketing communications director Emily Echevarria. “There are so many older adults right in our community suffering through summer, either without air conditioning or with inadequate air conditioning, and we can help ease that burden by coming together each year for our seniors with this event.”
Each year, hundreds of local elders aged 60 and over are helped through the program, most of whom have no air conditioning and whose homes reach upwards of 90 degrees in the peak of summer. In 2025, Council on Aging helped almost 600 at-risk older adults with weatherization support to avoid the hazardous effects of heat-related health complications.
Information on heat stress and heat stroke will be available at the event, as well as information on how our community’s vulnerable seniors can receive donated AC units and fans. Fans and ACs will not be distributed during the event on June 5. Individuals interested in receiving a fan and/or AC should call Council on Aging at (850) 432-1475 beginning June 5. Only individuals age 60 and older will qualify.
