Youth Tour

Three Delaware students enjoyed an all-expenses-paid trip to Washington, D.C., June 11-15 as part of the 53rd annual National Rural Electric Cooperative Association’s (NRECA) Youth Tour. These rising high school seniors joined 1,700 other students from across the nation who participated in 
the event:

Kaylee Groce, 
Milford High School
Tanner Hollis, 
Woodbridge High School
Dane Zimmerman, 
Sussex Technical High School

Their trip was sponsored by Delaware Electric Cooperative. The students toured Capitol Hill and met with U.S. Senator Chris Coons. They also visited a variety of historical and cultural sites in the nation’s capital, including Arlington National Cemetery, the National Museum of African American History and Culture and the Newseum. Among the fun activities the students enjoyed were a twilight cruise on the Potomac, a Washington Nationals baseball game, and the opening night performance of “The Sound of Music” at the Kennedy Center’s Opera House.
As part of the NRECA-sponsored National Youth Day on June 12, all of the state groups convened to learn from inspirational speakers. This year’s agenda included Mike Schlappi, a four-time Paralympic Medalist and two-time world champion in wheelchair basketball, who shared his inspiring message, “Just because you can’t stand up, doesn’t mean you can’t stand out!” 
Since 1964, the nation’s cooperative electric utilities have sponsored more than 65,000 high school juniors and seniors to visit Washington, D.C., talk one-on-one with their U.S. congressional delegations and learn from energy and grassroots government education sessions. NRECA is the national service organization representing the nation’s more than 900 member-owned, not-for-profit electric cooperatives, which provide electric service to 42 million people in 47 states. 
“Youth Tour was an amazing experience,” the students agreed. Dane Zimmerman added, “It was really cool to meet our elected officials and learn about politics up close. Plus, we made new friends from nearly every state and experienced history first-hand. It really made us think about what it means to be an American, and shows that people our age do care about this country.” Zimmerman, who was chosen to represent our state on the Youth Leadership Council (YLC), returned to Washington, D.C., in July for a workshop to develop his public speaking skills. YLC is composed of one student from each state, selected by their chaperones and peers, who play an active role in NRECA’s Annual Meeting the following spring. 
“Our youth are our future, and we’re proud to continue giving them the tools to succeed,” said Kevin Yingling, chaperone for the Delaware students.
For more information about the Youth Tour Program, visit
www.youthtour.coop or contact Kevin Yingling at: 
[email protected].