Employees at a central Arkansas car dealership surprised Hog superfan Canaan Sandy and his mother with a new car Tuesday after they had logged 400,000 miles on their old vehicle while traveling around the state for Razorback events.
Mark Miller, general manager at Frank Fletcher Dodge Chrysler Jeep in Sherwood, saw a tweet from KATV sportscaster Steve Sullivan that explained how many miles Canaan and Ginger Sandy had traveled in their car.
This happened as I was wrapping up my interview with Hudson Henry. Canaan Sandy's mom deserves a medal or a new car. Her car has over 400,000 miles. Many of those miles at events like this... pic.twitter.com/6ZQrvf0WDS
— Steve Sullivan (@sully7777) October 12, 2018
The next day, Miller met with Frank Fletcher, a University of Arkansas graduate and the dealership's owner, to address the need.
"I said, 'I think there’s a cause that we can get behind and do something about,'" Miller said. "Frank knew who Canaan was, and he didn’t waste a second. He said, 'Let’s find them a new car.'"
Sullivan helped lure the Cave City residents back to the dealership under the premise that the salesmen could get them "a good deal," Miller said. When they walked in, the pair was surprised with a pre-owned, fuel-efficient Ford Focus in Razorback red.
"He's such a great young man, and she's such a great mom to take him everywhere," Fletcher said in a video posted on Miller's Facebook page. "He's a true Razorback fan, so we're glad to be involved."
The first trip in the new Hogmobile will be Friday, when the Sandys travel to Fayetteville for the Red-White basketball scrimmage.
"I haven't had a new car since Canaan was born. All Canaan and I were doing was having fun," Ginger Sandy said. "I hope it likes gravel roads. We'll try to keep it clean."