On a scorching summer day, an older gentleman made his way slowly into the Fayetteville Tractor Supply Co. in search of a new battery. A young employee, Adeline Grigsby, not only found the correct battery but also drove it down to the vehicle, changed it out for him, and then brought the dead battery back to the store to process the trade-in refund.
This fleeting moment was a typical day on the job for Grigsby, and she said that if it were her grandparent, she would want someone to do the same. Her generous act of kindness would gain her recognition, though she did not know it at the time and was not seeking anything in return.
Grigsby, born and raised in Taft, has always loved her rural life. She said that nature, small-town culture, and farm animals make her feel at home.
“It’s very rural, and it’s beautiful out here with all the trees and fields. I love that people have cattle and horses and chickens,” Grigsby said. “I live with my grandparents, who have about 40 acres in Taft, and I take care of them and the property.”
She has a passion for raising chickens herself, and spent a lot of time at Tractor Supply Co. as a teenager visiting and buying chicks on “Chick Days.”
“I always went in there to buy chickens because they piqued my interest, so I just turned it into my hobby,” Grigsby said.
Grigsby said the atmosphere at Tractor Supply Co. was so friendly and welcoming that she knew from a young age she wanted to work there. She started her first shift there at 18, one month before graduating from Lincoln County High School. She then worked as a cashier for two years, a team lead for three, and was recently promoted to assistant store manager at the new Ardmore Tractor Supply Co. location. Her promotion aligns with her fifth anniversary with the company. She is living her childhood dream.
“I wanted to work at Tractor Supply when I was 15, but I had to wait until I was 18,” she said. “I am very, very blessed.”
It was while working at the Fayetteville location that she met and assisted the older customer with his battery installation. She was unaware that after that event, her district manager submitted the story of Grigsby stepping in to help this customer from start to finish, even when it meant going with him to do the battery swap herself. She was surprised to learn she had won a quarterly award for this submission, which automatically entered her into the regional competition for the 2025 Country Mile Award. This prestigious award was given to only 20 employees across 16 regions and multiple districts.
The Country Mile Award honors a select group of top-performing employees who go above and beyond to serve customers, help coworkers, and care for animals, according to the company’s website.
“We get to send ‘country miles’ to recognize people for their hard work and their achievements,” Grigsby said. “My manager had sent it in the day after I had helped the customer.”
After a few months, her store manager at the time, Donna Renegar, gave her the good news that she was one of the 20 recipients of the annual award.
“Oh my word. It was just amazing,” Grigsby said.
Tractor Supply Co. invited the winners to receive their awards at an all-expenses-paid trip to Nashville for the four-day Annual Sales Meeting in March.
“Everything was paid for,” Grigsby said. “I got to tour Music City Center and participate in all the events that Tractor Supply has, and I won tickets to Cody Johnson as well.”
The trip also included a meet-and-greet with Tractor Supply Co. CEO Hal Lawton and Vice President John Ordus.
“I got to ask the vice president a question,” she said. “It was super cool to get to talk to the people who run the company in person.”
Grigsby said the trip itself and all the great rewards and opportunities that came with it were incredible, but she never expected that her moment in the spotlight would be highlighted in one of the most important cities in the world: New York, New York. As one of 2025’s Country Mile recipients, Grigsby’s photo was displayed on the NASDAQ screen in Times Square
“It was a once-in-a-lifetime experience, I will say,” Grigsby said. GN
