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Lincoln boy takes being a fan seriously

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By BRIAN CHRISTOPHERSON / Lincoln Journal Star

Sunday, Feb 17, 2008 - 11:48:06 pm CST

Mitchell Walton does not do recess. Sorry, no time. His true love gets in the way.

He’d rather sit next to his computer teacher, Ms. Cordes, and talk about fans.

Yes, fans … you know, like oscillating fans that keep you cool?

Mitchell adores them, as his T-shirt tells all: “I (Heart) My Fans.”

The Kahoa Elementary School first-grader collects them, has about 130. He bids on them at auctions, often against old men.

He asks and receives fans for birthdays and Christmases. He cuts pictures of fans out of ads and puts them in binders. His parents take him to fan fairs. Sometimes the guys there tell him to keep his fingers out of the fans. Um, yeah, he knows. Do they think he’s an amateur or something?

He once dressed as a fan for Halloween. A chord was his tail. Blades were his hat.  Age 7, he’s the youngest member of the Antique Fan Collectors Association.

“It’s mostly made up of elderly gentlemen,” says Wade, Mitchell’s father.

Mitchell doesn’t care. Fans have caught his fancy since he was 1. He’d point and his eyes would follow the spinning blades.

He’s been looking for fans since.

Whenever the family is shopping at SouthPointe Pavilions, he makes sure they go into Hollister, and not because of the store’s trendy clothes. Hollister has fans. A teenage girl once asked Mitchell and his dad if she could offer any help. Mitchell pointed at the fans and said, “I could fix them.”

Old and new, he has all kinds: Westinghouse, Emerson, Vornado, Kenmore, Robbins & Myers, Jack Frost, General Electric.

He went to a garage sale with his mom and saw a fan on a top shelf.

“I want that fan,” he said. It wasn’t for sale.

“I want that fan.”

The owners recognized Mitchell would love the fan more than they ever could. Sold, for $30.

Better months are ahead. It will be summer soon, and there will be garage sales and newspaper ads showing pictures of fans. The Fan Boy will see every one of them and there will be delight beyond what recess could ever bring.

Reach Brian Christopherson at 473-7439 or bchristopherson@journalstar.com.


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timmy wrote on February 18, 2008 12:42 am:
" wow good story "
Barbara wrote on February 18, 2008 9:35 am:
" This is just plain wierd. "
love it!! wrote on February 18, 2008 11:01 am:
" This kid is about as cool as the kid I saw that collects vacuum cleaners. What a great, clean, fun, and unique hobby!! "
Mike Humphries wrote on February 18, 2008 11:38 am:
" This kid's awesome. "
Barbara.... wrote on February 18, 2008 12:51 pm:
" Seriously? He's in FIRST GRADE! Let a kid be a kid. So he thinks fans are cool. Give the poor kid a break. "
Tammy wrote on February 18, 2008 4:27 pm:
" Way To Go Mitchell! I am so proud of you! I know your mom and dad are proud of you. It is really cool to see you and all your fans. "
aspergermom wrote on February 18, 2008 8:42 pm:
" Wow Mitchell, I wish I had a great collection of neat fans! My daughter likes toasters, especially the real old funny looking ones! We don't have space for a collection, but she enjoys them in books and museums. You sound like a very cool kid! "
Aunt Shari wrote on February 26, 2008 1:23 pm:
" Way to go "fan man" I keep looking for fun ones for ya at Auctions and yard sales. Love ya lots. "
Patty K wrote on February 26, 2008 1:26 pm:
" I work with your Aunt Shari, what a great thing to collect. You are an amazing boy. She said you can take them apart and fix them. Awesome. "

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