Youth Tour experience in Washington, D.C.—“unforgettable”
by Langston Richter, Steele-Waseca 2024 Youth Tour delegate
My experience in Washington D.C. with the Youth Tour was unforgettable.
Thirty-four delegates from Minnesota participated in this year’s Washington, D.C. Youth Tour, June 18-23. The Minnesota Rural Electric Association organized activities for the state’s delegates as the Tour was hosted by the National Rural Electric Cooperative Association. Steele-Waseca’s Delegate Langston Richter is pictured kneeling in the front row, second from the right.
While the Minnesota delegation was in Washington D.C., we not only visited numerous famous monuments and memorials, but also made lifelong friends and connections along the way.
Some of the highlights included the National Cathedral, the Holocaust Museum, the Jefferson Memorial, the Washington Monument, the changing of the guard at Arlington National Cemetery, and so much more.
The monuments that we visited were quite spectacular in themselves, but we also saw them at night while on a Segway tour! My favorite monument at night was definitely the Lincoln Memorial, where the twenty foot tall statue loomed over us, glowing over the Potomac River in the night.
My experience in Washington D.C. also involved an opportunity to learn. I expanded my knowledge regarding not only the basis of American society as we know it, but also about the importance rural electric cooperatives hold in our lives.
I received the opportunity to hear directly from Senators Amy Klobuchar and Tina Smith at the U.S. Capitol, their opinions and actions on government policies involving rural electricity.
Beyond sightseeing and learning opportunities, I really enjoyed getting to know the chaperones, and the other teenagers who were selected to be delegates to represent our cooperatives at the Youth Tour.
During the Washington D.C. Youth Tour, I made many friends who I plan to continue to keep in touch with. I cannot thank Steele-Waseca Cooperative Electric enough for this life-changing experience, and I hope many other people my age can also enjoy attending the Washington D.C. Youth Tour!
Langston was also asked about the hot weather in Washington, D.C., with temperatures during the Youth Tour, June 18-23, in the mid- to upper-90s. “The heat was pretty rough, but nothing an ice cream cone couldn’t cure!”
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