When I agreed to be a chaperone for the Electric Cooperative Youth Tour, I wasn’t quite sure what to expect. For years, I had heard Robyn Turney, Alfalfa Electric retiree, describe it as a “trip of a lifetime,” and while that sounded incredible, I wasn’t sure what it meant for someone like me — I was never much of a history buff, despite my high school social studies teacher’s best efforts (thank you, Mrs. Tisdale). What I found in Washington, D.C., was something I never anticipated. The history alone? Incredible. Watching our student delegates take it all in? Amazing. But the real beauty of this trip had less to do with monuments or memorials and more to do with people.
This year, AEC was proud to send three outstanding student delegates to Washington, D.C.: Talyn Allison, Wyatt Parker and Kaycie Shelton. Each of them experienced the trip in their own way — and each came home with something they didn’t have before.
TALYN ALLISON-Talyn was captivated by her visit to Mount Vernon, George Washington’s historic estate along the Potomac River — a place she described as unlike anything she had ever experienced.
WYATT PARKER-Wyatt’s standout moment came at Mount Vernon as well — watching a demonstration of how wheat was threshed on the historic grounds, he was struck by the ingenuity of early American agriculture and the hands-on history that brought it to life.
KAYCIE SHELTON-Kaycie’s favorite memory was pin trading with delegates from across the country — a beloved Youth Tour tradition and a perfect symbol of the connections that make this trip so special. She came in nervous and left with a full heart.