About

In early 1957, NRECA’s Annual Meeting was off to a strong start in Chicago, and invited speaker, U.S. Senator Lyndon B. Johnson (D: TX) addressed the crowd with a novel idea:

Rural teens should have the opportunity to experience Washington, D.C. and see their government in action – And America’s rural electric cooperatives are the perfect organizations to facilitate this!

“If one thing comes out of this meeting, it will be sending youngsters to the national capital where they can actually see what the flag stands for and represents.” 

– Lyndon B. Johnson

That summer, a few Texas electric cooperatives sent teens from their service areas to Washington, D.C. to work for the then-Senator Johnson.

The following summer, in 1958, Iowa’s rural electric cooperatives sponsored 34 delegates for a week-long tour of Washington, D.C. Later that same summer, Illinois followed suit and brought their own busload of rural youth to our nation’s capital.

The success of these first trips garnered national attention and in 1964, the National Rural Electric Cooperative Association (NRECA) began to coordinate activities among state delegations and assist with Capitol Hill visits. That year, about 400 teens from 12 different states got to tour monuments, visit museums, and speak with their elected officials – all on behalf of America’s Electric Cooperatives!

Youth Tour has grown bigger and stronger in the 60+ years since Iowa made that first long bus trip across the country.