SHELBYVILLE, Tenn. — On Nov. 1, 1936, a lineman flipped a switch and 386 rural Middle Tennessee households got electricity for the first time. Ninety years later, Duck River Electric Membership Corporation (DREMC) — which now serves more than 87,000 members across 17 counties, including Moore County — is marking that anniversary at its 2026 Annual Membership Meeting.

The meeting is set for Saturday, August 15, at Harris Middle School in Shelbyville. Registration and a complimentary breakfast begin at 8:30 a.m., with the business meeting starting at 9:30 a.m.

Beyond the anniversary itself, DREMC is using the meeting to give members a look at the cooperative’s finances, operations and board leadership for the year ahead — the core business every member-owned utility is required to conduct annually. Members who register can also enter for premium door prizes and a grand-prize drawing for a retired DREMC fleet truck, an F-150 4×4. The first 400 members to register receive a commemorative DREMC bucket filled with additional giveaway items.

The event will also introduce members to the students who represented local communities on this year’s DREMC-sponsored Washington, D.C. Youth Tour, a leadership program that exposes high schoolers to the cooperative business model alongside a firsthand look at the nation’s capital.

Families attending can meet Watts the Lineduck, DREMC’s mascot, who will be greeting members at his first annual meeting.

For Moore County members, the meeting is a chance to engage directly with the cooperative that serves the county through DREMC’s Lynchburg office — one of eight district offices spanning the co-op’s roughly 2,500-square-mile territory from Columbia to Sewanee.

DREMC is a not-for-profit, member-owned cooperative founded in 1936 that provides power to more than 87,000 members across 17 counties in southern Middle Tennessee, including Moore County. T o learn more, check out their website. •

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