Fact checked the Substack post about a man named Earl Hutchins donating used children's coats anonymously by placing them A fence by Lincoln Elementary

1. The claim and the originating report

The central claim under scrutiny is that a man named Earl Hutchins anonymously donated used children’s coats by placing them on a fence outside Lincoln Elementary; the only directly relevant item in the provided reporting is a Bluesky post which describes finding fifteen coats on a fence outside Lincoln Elementary and quotes a principal who called police saying “Could be stolen” ^[1]. The Bluesky item is a social‑media anecdote and, within the material supplied, stands alone as the sole account about coats at that school ^[1].

2. What the supplied sources actually verify

From the sources given, the only verifiable facts are that someone posted on Bluesky that fifteen coats were found on a fence outside Lincoln Elementary and that the principal reacted with alarm, calling police and suggesting the coats “Could be stolen” ^[1]. The supplied obituary for an Earl Hutchins documents a person by that name and basic life details in Greenville, South Carolina, including that he died in November 2020, but the obituary does not connect him to the coats story, to Lincoln Elementary, or to any donation activity described ^[2].

3. Crucial gaps and what is not supported

No source in the packet links the Bluesky anecdote to an individual named Earl Hutchins; there is no police report, school statement, local news article, eyewitness interview, photo evidence, or other primary corroboration provided that ties the coats to any donor ^{[1] [2]}. The absence of corroborating documentation in the provided material means the proposition “Earl Hutchins donated coats by placing them on the fence” cannot be confirmed with the sources at hand. The obituary for an Earl Hutchins cannot be used to prove he performed the act without additional evidence ^[2].

4. Alternative explanations the evidence allows

Given the principal’s quoted concern — “Could be stolen” — the available account itself raises alternative explanations: the coats might have been misplaced, stolen property left by someone else, a prank, a well‑intentioned anonymous donation, or misinterpreted social‑media embellishment ^[1]. The Bluesky post is anecdotal and lacks chain‑of‑custody detail; absent further reporting, each of those alternatives remains plausible and none can be ruled out by the provided sources ^[1].

5. Source reliability and possible agendas

A single social‑media post is not the same as journalism grounded in multiple verifiable sources; social posts can amplify rumors, misremembered details, or deliberate misinformation ^[1]. The obituary is a legitimate primary source for a person’s death notice but does not function as proof of actions taken by that individual outside what it records ^[2]. No material in the packet suggests an explicit partisan agenda behind the coats story, but social platforms and their audiences can have incentives to spread viral human‑interest or indignation narratives without full verification ^[1].

6. Conclusion and recommended next steps for verification

Based solely on the provided reporting, the specific claim that Earl Hutchins anonymously donated children’s coats by hanging them on the Lincoln Elementary fence is unproven; the coats incident is only attested in a Bluesky post and the name Earl Hutchins appears separately in an obituary with no connecting evidence ^{[1] [2]}. To close the gap, standard verification steps would include obtaining a police report or statement from the school, local news coverage, photographs or timestamps, and any eyewitness testimony linking the act to a named individual — none of which are present in the supplied sources ^{[1] [2]}.