Serving Barnwell County and it's neighbors since 1852
Two sisters from Blackville were among more than 1,600 students selected to attend a unique gathering in the nation’s capital.
Twins Macey and Madelyn Respass of Blackville were among 57 student delegates selected to represent South Carolina electric cooperatives at the Electric Cooperative Youth Tour. The National Rural Electric Cooperative Association (NRECA) has hosted the Electric Cooperative Youth Tour every June in the nation’s capital since the 1950s. The Respass twins along with Grayson Hodge of Harleyville were the delegates for Edisto Electric Cooperative.
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“We believe that students should see their nation’s capital up close, learn about the political process and interact with their elected officials. Students gain a personal understanding of American history and their role as a citizen by meeting their representative and senators. While student groups are organized at the state level, they all come together for Youth Day, where they get to meet each other and hear featured speakers who provide insight to the important roles electric cooperatives play in their communities,” according to the NRECA’s website, www.electric.coop.
The Respass twins applied for the trip after seeing an advertisement. They were then interviewed and selected to attend.
“Thank you for a great opportunity,” said Macey of Edisto Electric. “This experience checked off a lot of my bucket list. It taught me a lot about our country and politics. We made a lot of lifelong friends along the way.”
Joining nearly 1,600 student delegates from 44 states, the Respass twins journeyed to the nation’s capital from June 15-20.
“I think the greatest thing I learned was the history of our nation,” said Madelyn.
The student delegates visited many educational and historical sites such as George Washington’s Mount Vernon, the National Museum of African-American History & Culture, the National Mall, and the National Pentagon 9/11 Memorial.
“My favorite moment was going to the Holocaust Museum because it was really eye opening. You know how bad it is, but you don’t know how bad until you see all that,” said Madelyn, who also enjoyed seeing other sites like the Lincoln Memorial and the White House on her first trip to Washington, D.C.
The sisters also enjoyed learning about leadership and meeting lawmakers, including senators Tim Scott and Lindsey Graham of South Carolina who spent time answering questions on the steps of the Capitol.
“Meeting the senators taught us about how you can be your own person and take ownership of things,” said Madelyn.
Sen. Scott talked about how he started at the bottom, including some failed classes, but he didn’t let his hardships stop him from reaching his goals.
“He pushed through it. It was a really inspiring story,” said Macey.
Madelyn said Sen. Scott’s story shows anybody can do the same.
Throughout the trip, students participated in the student-run Soda Pop Co-op, which sold snacks and drinks out of the charter bus’s luggage compartment between stops and at the end of each day. Macey was hired to manage the cooperative.
“It taught me how to work with people, how to run a business, and how to work alongside people,” said Macey.
Other highlights included a riverboat dinner cruise along the Potomac River, meeting new friends, and trading state pins with one another.
“I didn’t realize how much of an accent we had til we met students from other states," said Macey.
The students also gathered for National Youth Day where they learned about the rich history of electric cooperatives and the important role of being an active participant in America’s democracy.
Macey and Madelyn are the twin daughters of John and Stacey Respass of Blackville. Macey and Madelyn are seniors at Jefferson Davis Academy in Blackville. Macey plans to major in criminology after graduation and Madelyn plans to get her bachelor’s degree in nursing.
