I must say the flight from Baltimore to St. Louis was an experience. Let’s just say it was a little bumpier... If you can call it that. Hannah just said it was turbulence. Whatever, it was not what I expected and not like our first flight. However, the view was spectacular! This made up for the rough sections. Yes, this is only my second flight!
Everyone was having a fun time and the Southwest Airline Flight Attendants were a blast. We were taking pictures and moving around when the seatbelt sign was off. We were now free to move about the cabin... Sounds like a commercial. Ha Ha! Enjoyed a Coke with a smile at 36,000 feet. Shared my peanuts with my new friends. Even traded a few for some of their cookies.
An hour and 40 minutes later, we touched down in St. Louis. Lonnie Tucker was there to meet us with a sign that had all of our names on it! He is awesome! Thanks Lonnie! I hugged many of my friends and said goodbye... Several times!
I (Krista) really can’t believe how close this group has grown in such a short time! We saw so many unbelievable sights together, experienced new things and laughed through most of it.
I (Samantha) plan to keep in touch with many of them, and I hope we have a reunion one day soon.
Here is a picture of our Cuivre River Electric Cooperative Youth Tour delegates at the St. Louis baggage claim. Mike Marsch was great! He made everyone feel like one huge family.
We really appreciate all of the work Mike, Chris and Nikki put into making this the best trip ever!
Hey Missouri! Hey Mike! 1, 2, 3, 4... We loaded up the Yukon and hit the road. We talked about everything we saw while in Washington, D.C. WOW! I still can't believe we spent a week in our nation’s capital!
Time for one more picture with our new friends. Ok maybe a few more. Maybe a few more with this person. Now I need a picture with that one and this one... Just one more picture Lonnie!
Okay. Maybe one more picture of our 2012 Missouri Youth Tour name badges. They have been with us every step of the way for the last seven days and six nights. From Jefferson City to St. Louis to Baltimore to Washington, D.C. Every monument and museum. The White House and U.S. Capitol. Not to mention, just about every sidewalk in the D.C. area and stairs, stairs, stairs and more stairs. Did I mention stairs!
Our name badges are covered with Youth Tour state pins that we traded with the other delegates during the Youth Tour Conference. Let’s see if you can find the California pin? Only a few people found this one!
I’ll (Samantha) forever be grateful to my electric cooperative, Cuivre River Electric, for giving me this opportunity. Thank you to the Cuivre River Electric Board of Directors, General Manager and CEO Dan L. Brown, Mary Jane Clark and the 60,000 Cuivre River member/owners.
I (Michael) now know and truly understand what a cooperative is all about. I hope to one day become a cooperative member/owner and share in this amazing principle. A special “Thank You” goes out to Lonnie Tucker for making our summer one of the best summers ever! Thanks to Mike Marsch and everyone at the Association of Missouri’s Electric Cooperatives for making this trip to Washington, D.C. possible. It was truly the trip of a lifetime! Thank you!
Your 2012 Youth Tour Delegates: Melora Broker, Lauryn Burch, Krista Dye, Samantha Olsson, Hannah Romaker and Michael Edwards.