Murfreesboro, Tenn. -- Join Middle Tennessee Electric (MTE) this Saturday, April 22, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Murfreesboro’s historic downtown square for the 22nd annual Earth Day Celebration.
 

Rutherford County’s Earth Day Celebration aims to educate and mobilize our community into action with this year’s theme of “Renew Rutherford Together.” The theme encompasses renewable energy, keeping our rivers and streams clean, recycling, planting pollinating plants to support bees and butterflies and supporting the use of sustainable products.
 
“It’s important to bring the community together and encourage everyone to do their part to ‘Renew Rutherford Together,’" said Amy Byers, 2023 Earth Day Celebration committee chair and MTE’s marketing and public relations coordinator. “We all need a healthy Earth to support our livelihoods, health and happiness. MTE is proud to support and plan this event each year, and we encourage everyone to come enjoy a fun, educational day.”

MTE will have booths with information about the Tree Wise program, ProSolar program, energy efficiency, electric vehicles, member service, the EV Car Club and more. The vegetation management team will be giving away 500 redbud seedlings, and MTE’s senior leadership team and board members will be present to engage with the community and answer any questions members may have.
 
Murfreesboro Parks and Recreation and the Smyrna Outdoor Adventure Center have partnered to offer a free Kids Zone. The Kids Zone is geared for children of all ages and will feature an inflatable, yard games and hands-on activities. There will also be a scavenger hunt for all ages.  Everyone who completes the scavenger hunt will be entered into a drawing to win one of several prizes. 

The entertainment lineup includes Steel De Boro at 10 a.m., QuarterLife at 11 a.m., Stones River Bluegrass Band at noon and Everybody Drum Some at 1 p.m. Attendees can enjoy complimentary refreshments provided by MTE, Kroger and Lewis Family Bakery while visiting craft and educational booths. Rutherford County Solid Waste, Murfreesboro Water Resources, the Tennessee Valley Authority, MTE and the Stones River Watershed will give away 500 cross-body bags. These will be available at MTE’s member services booth while supplies last. To learn more about participating booths, visit https://www.facebook.com/RCEarthDay.
 
The 2023 Earth Day Celebration Poster Contest winners will be announced at noon, and the winning posters will be on display. Students were asked to design a poster demonstrating “What can we do to renew Rutherford together?” The contest is sponsored by Murfreesboro Water Resources, the Rutherford County Solid Waste Department, MaxShred, Consolidated Utility District and MTE.
 
Rutherford County’s Earth Day Celebration is a zero-waste event and completely free, thanks to the following event sponsors: Middle Tennessee Electric, Rutherford County, the City of Murfreesboro, the Tennessee Valley Authority, MaxShred, Clark Iron & Metal, Stones River Watershed and Recyclops.