Tennessee Voices, Episode 314: State Sen. Kerry Roberts of Springfield
A year after he suffered from a brain hemorrhage in October 2020, Tennessee state Sen. Kerry Roberts decided he wanted to ride his bicycle for 100 miles to celebrate his recovery.
But the ride became more than just about his health; it was a way for him to give back to the people of Waverly and Humphreys County who had been devastated by the 2021 flood.
Roberts, a Republican of Springfield, represents in the Tennessee Senate District 25, an area which includes multiple counties including Robertson, Cheatham, Dickson, Hickman and Humphreys.
Roberts, a trained CPA who used to own a bicycle stores, recently chose to reprise his ride to bring attention to the flood survivors one year later.
On this episode of the Tennessee Voices video podcast, Roberts talked about his ride, his recovery and his back story, which includes wins and losses both in business and politics.
We also talked about some of his legislative achievements including Tennessee being the last state to enact the Katie Beckett waiver, granting financial assistance to parents of disabled children who do not qualify for Medicaid because of their income.
He also talked about his spiritual growth during COVID, getting off social media and wanting a return of statesmanship.
Hear more Tennessee Voices: Get the weekly opinion newsletter for insightful and thought provoking columns.
Sign up for Latino Tennessee Voices newsletter: Read compelling stories for and with the Latino community in Tennessee.
Sign up for Black Tennessee Voices newsletter: Read compelling columns by Black writers from across Tennessee.
About Tennessee Voices
The Tennessee Voices videocast is a 20-minute program, which started in March 2020 and invites leaders, thinkers and innovators who have written guest columns for a USA TODAY Network Tennessee publication to share their insights and wisdom with me and our viewers.
Please email your ideas for future guests to me at dplazas@tennessean.com. Thank you for watching.
Finally, our journalists are working hard during this pandemic to bring you accurate, verified and solid information. Please consider subscribing and supporting local journalism.
Watch past episodes: Tennessee Voices videocast
David Plazas is the director of opinion and engagement for the USA TODAY Network Tennessee and an editorial board member of The Tennessean. Tweet to him at @davidplazas.
This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Tennessee Voices: A year after the Waverly flood with Kerry Roberts
