December 21, 2007

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact: Barry Lauber

Phone: 800-737-4111     E-mail: barryl@seiremc.com

Join Indiana Youth In Washington D.C.!

High school juniors have a chance to join other Indiana youth on a trip of a lifetime.  Applications are now available for the 2008 Electric Cooperative Youth Tour to Washington, D.C.  Indiana’s Touchstone Energy cooperatives have hosted the Youth Tour since 1960, providing hundreds of young Hoosiers the opportunity to visit our nation’s capital and learn about the federal government and the cooperative utility industry. The trip begins on June 12, 2008 in Indianapolis and ends on June 19, 2008.

According to Robert Mackey, GM/CEO of Southeastern IN REMC, the Indiana delegation will be approximately 60 students from throughout the state, each selected by a local Touchstone Energy cooperative.  In 2007, nearly 1,500 students from around the country were in Washington for the conference.

“Southeastern IN REMC is pleased to be able to provide this opportunity for local students,” Robert Mackey said.  “It’s a great trip and a wonderful chance to see the sights, make new friends and learn how everyone, even young people, can make a difference in the political process.”

The Indiana delegation will meet in Indianapolis on Thursday, June 12 to get acquainted and learn about the Indiana legislative process.  The students will depart early on Friday and spend their first evening in Gettysburg, PA.  On Saturday they will tour the Gettysburg National Battlefield, spend the afternoon in Baltimore’s Inner Harbor and arrive in Washington, D.C., that evening.  Sunday through Wednesday is a full schedule of sight-seeing, speakers, visits to the National Memorials, a collection of museums, and a night cruise on the Potomac River.

Students will participate in a Monday morning “Youth Tour Rally,” where they will share their thoughts and opinions on a variety of timely issues.  This will prepare them for a busy Tuesday on Capitol Hill, when Indiana’s students will visit with representatives of Indiana’s Congressional delegation.  The week will end on a high note with the “All-States Dinner Dance” at the Hyatt Regency Crystal City.

For more information about the 2008 Electric Cooperative Youth Tour to Washington, D.C., or to receive an application, contact Barry Lauber, Director of Office Services, at 1-800-737-4111 and visit their website www.seiremc.com or Indiana’s electric cooperative website at www.indremcs.org in the section entitled “Youth Tour.”