On Saturday, April 1, an EF-2 tornado left hit the small community of Readyville, leaving widespread damage and destroying or damaging many homes and businesses. Middle Tennessee Electric was on-site to begin work almost immediately, but its mission to help its members goes beyond restoring power, and the cooperative and its partners have continued to aid the Readyville community following the tornado.

Several MTE team members coordinated two volunteer days for employees in the storm’s aftermath. On April 12 and 13, MTE employees were joined by volunteers from the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) and other organizations as they worked to clear debris and assist with clean-up. There were more than 100 volunteers each day, contributing a total of 1,600 hours. 

In addition to providing volunteers, TVA made a $10,000 donation for tornado relief to Cannon County Youth Dream, Inc, which serves children and their families in Cannon County. 

“TVA is pleased to partner with MTE to provide assistance in the Readyville community through volunteer efforts and by supporting this nonprofit that will provide direct relief to those impacted,” said TVA’s Community Relations Manager Rachel Beaty Crickman.  

Cannon County Youth Dream will distribute these funds to individuals who were directly impacted by the devastating events in relation to the tornado occurring in Readyville in April.

“We appreciate the support we have received from MTE and TVA. TVA’s tremendous donation will certainly help the residents of Readyville in this tremendous recovery relief effort,” said Michael A. Thomas, vice president of Cannon County Youth Dream.

About Middle Tennessee Electric (MTE) - Founded in 1936, MTE is the largest electric cooperative in the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) region and the second largest in the United States, serving more than 750,000 Tennesseans via 325,000+ accounts covering nearly 2,200 square miles in 11 Middle Tennessee counties, primarily Rutherford, Cannon, Williamson and Wilson. Municipalities served include Murfreesboro, Franklin, Brentwood, Smyrna, La Vergne, Lebanon, and Mt. Juliet. MTE employs 520 people in seven local offices and its Murfreesboro corporate headquarters.

MTE’s subsidiary, United Communications, is a nationally recognized broadband company with a fiber network spanning more than 1,700 route miles providing high-speed internet and other services to portions of Williamson, Rutherford, Marshall, Bedford, Franklin, Wilson, and Davidson counties. For more information, please visit www.mte.com.