CEMC board names Abernathy Interim President, Chief Executive Officer

In preparation for the upcoming retirement of CEMC President, Chief Executive Officer Chris Davis, Cumberland Electric Membership Corporation’s board of directors recently selected David Abernathy to fill the temporary position of Interim President, Chief Executive Officer. Abernathy will work alongside Davis until his retirement in August 2027, then assume the role of President, CEO on Sept. 1, 2027.

Since joining CEMC in 1996 as an oiler, Abernathy has advanced through a variety of roles during a career spanning three decades.

After completing the Lineman Apprenticeship Program, he advanced to journeyman lineman and journeyman serviceman before moving into engineering and leadership positions, including Clarksville District engineer, project engineer, supervisor of district engineers and supervisor of engineers. In 2016, Abernathy became manager of operations division and was later named manager of engineering and operations division in 2020, a position he held for six years before being named interim president, CEO.