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On June 17, 36 high school students sponsored by their local electric cooperative left for the trip of a lifetime in Washington, D.C. for NRECA’s Youth Tour. During the week-long trip, ²»Á¼ÈËÑо¿Ëù delegates learned all about the electric cooperative business model during informational sessions with OEC and NRECA, and heard speeches from candidates running for ²»Á¼ÈËÑо¿Ëù’s Youth Leadership Council before voting for this year’s representative, Darcie Reinhart from Consolidated Cooperative. 

²»Á¼ÈËÑо¿Ëù delegates also had the opportunity to meet with the policymakers who represent their cooperative communities, including Senators Sherrod Brown and JD Vance, and Congressmen Bill Johnson, Jim Jordan, and Bob Latta. Delegates came prepared to their meetings with legislators by bringing questions about issues their hometowns are facing. 

In addition, delegates saw some of the greatest buildings, monuments, museums, and attractions Washington, D.C., is known for, including: 

• The White House
• The Capitol Building
• U.S. Supreme Court
• Library of Congress
• Arlington National Cemetery
• World War II Memorial 
• Vietnam War Memorial
• Korean War Memorial
• Lincoln Memorial
• Washington Monument
• Jefferson Memorial
• Franklin D. Roosevelt Memorial
• Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial
• National 9/11 Pentagon Memorial
• Gettysburg Civil War Museum and Cyclorama
• Gettysburg Battlefield
• U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum
• National History Museum
• American History Museum
• National Archives
• The Kennedy Center for a production of The Lion King
• Steven F. Udvar Hazy Air & Space Center

Delegates enjoyed getting to know students from across the nation during NRECA’s Youth Celebration, at the Iwo Jima Sunset Parade, and on a Potomac River Boat Dinner Cruise with delegates from Illinois, Mississippi, Oklahoma, and Arkansas.

There is no doubt these delegates made friendships and memories that will last a lifetime.