On Friday, November 12, line superintendent Andy Midyette turned off the lights as he departed his Engelhard office for the last time. Flipping that switch back on and any other switch on Tideland’s system will now be someone else’s job and Andy won’t miss that part.

“It’s stressful,” Andy said. “This is a 24/7 business, 365 days a year. Even when you’re not ‘on call’ you know the call can come at any time. Fortunately, I shared all those calls with a great team. I honestly couldn’t ask for a better group of people to work with from top to bottom.” And it’s a 32-year story that almost didn’t have a beginning.

Born and raised in Engelhard, Andy worked for NAPA Auto Parts nearly a decade. At age 30, he decided he didn’t want to spend another year stuck indoors. but he also wasn’t drawn to the county’s two most popular outdoor jobs: farming and fishing. So Andy moved to Virginia to explore other interests. Before he left he applied for a warehouseman position at Tideland. Four months later, the late Waverly Bond called to see if he was still interested in the job. The rest is history.

Andy climbed the ranks ultimately serving in every operational role in the Engelhard district. Andy reported for duty at the co-op in September 1989, the same month Hurriane Hugo hit. Fourteen Septembers later, Andy would live and work through his most memorable storm: Hurricane Isabel. “I never worried in the aftermath of a big storm because you know you won’t be working it alone,” Andy said. “Help is on the way and lots of it.”

What does the next chapter look like for Andy? He’s building a new home, just purchased an electric assist bicycle, and, with no more co-op phone calls to answer, he’s even eyeing a trip to Europe. The future is bright.