Indiana Youth Tour to Washington, D.C., is a once-in-a-lifetime experience for incoming high school seniors from our cooperative family. Students travel to the nation’s capital to learn about public service, our nation’s history and the electric cooperative story.
Noble REMC was fortunate to sponsor two students on the Indiana Youth Tour June 16-23 — Miriam Kline and Ryan Norden.
They joined a delegation of Indiana students who represented our state’s electric cooperatives, alongside thousands of students from across the country. Students visited the Flight 93 Memorial, the Gettysburg battlefield, Arlington National Cemetery, the Smithsonian museums and the National Mall memorials.
The Indiana Youth Tour students also participated in a youth rally hosted by the National Rural Electric Cooperative Association and spent a day on Capitol Hill, where they had an opportunity to meet with Indiana’s congressional delegation to ask questions and share their thoughts on a variety of timely issues.
But to get the best picture, let’s hear directly from this year’s delegates:
Miriam Kline, Churubusco Junior-Senior High School
“I was fortunate to be selected for the Youth Tour this year, and it did not disappoint! We spoke to congressmen, walked through the Library of Congress, saw the Declaration of Independence in the National Archives and visited more memorials than I could name. I made amazing friends and met wonderful people from around the country. We packed in so many trips and tours, I don’t think there’s much we missed! We even stopped at Gettysburg and the Flight 93 Memorial on the way.
“One thing that especially stuck out to me was the Flight 93 Memorial. We listened to the gut-wrenching phone calls of panicked passengers on the flight who would never see their loved ones again. We saw where the plane crashed in a Pennsylvania field and learned how it happened. We later went to the Pentagon Memorial and saw where the plane struck the building on 9/11. While we were there, we met a man who pulled out his phone and showed us pictures of what the building looked like the day it was struck, and we were all in awe. We met a lot of amazing, brave people who taught us more than looking at a memorial could.
“I recommend this adventure to any incoming senior – it’s worth it! Don’t let the long bus ride scare you away; ours was filled with laughter, friendships and 65 consecutive games of Crazy Eights. I want to give a huge thank you to Noble REMC for giving me this opportunity and everyone else who helped make it possible!”
Ryan Norden, East Noble High School
“Youth Tour for me was an incredible experience! We stayed busy the entire time by seeing many memorials and museums.
“My favorite thing we saw was Gettysburg. There were so many men that died trying to maintain unity in our country, and many of them were my age. It shows me how important my country is and helps me honor all those that gave their lives.
“Another experience I enjoyed was speaking to and learning from Indiana’s elected officials. They are incredibly intelligent people, and I felt like they truly had Indiana’s best interests at heart.
“I also made so many new connections with people all over the country and many new friends from Indiana. Youth Tour gave me the opportunity to see and learn about so many awesome things, and for that, I’m very grateful.”
