On her visit to the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Wall, Aniyah Bryant etches the name of Maj. James Westley Ayers of Moncks Corner. Each South Carolina Youth Tourist was given the name of a servicemember from their hometown to find on the wall. Photo by Josh P. Crotzer
MONDAY, JUNE 16, had already been an eventful day for Natalyia Jordan. After a morning tour of George Washington’s Mount Vernon and an afternoon at Arlington National Cemetery, she and the other 70 South Carolina high school students on Washington Youth Tour had a few hours to rest and freshen up before an evening dinner cruise down the Potomac River.
But first, an assortment of confections from Georgetown Cupcake were waiting for the Palmetto State contingent inside their hotel, making Jordan’s 17th birthday that much sweeter.
“It’s the best birthday I’ve ever had,” says Jordan. “This is the most ‘happy birthdays’ I’ve ever gotten. People who aren’t even my friends were telling me happy birthday. It’s the most known I’ve ever felt.”
Washington Youth Tour is an annual experience for rising high school seniors sponsored by the state’s electric cooperatives. Jordan represented Berkeley Electric, one of 21 electric cooperatives and associations sponsoring South Carolina students.
The five day, all-expenses-paid trip each June gives students the opportunity to learn how government works, walk in the footsteps of the founding fathers and honor those who have made the ultimate sacrifice for freedom. They also spent a day on Capitol Hill, visiting congressional offices, touring the Capitol Complex and meeting U.S. Sens. Lindsey Graham and Tim Scott on the Capitol steps.
On their final night, South Carolina’s students were among more than 1,800 students from 44 states gathered at the Gaylord National Resort and Convention Center to hear from national cooperative leaders, former Youth Tourists and paralympic gold medalist Mike Schlappi. Schlappi, who was shot in the chest when he was 14 and lost the ability to walk, challenged the students to overcome difficult circumstances in his motivating keynote address.
“I’ve had a low point in my life where I felt like, ‘What’s the point of anything?’” says Jordan. “(Schlappi had) a low point, and he’s risen from that and he’s doing amazing things. It was inspiring.”
Jordan says the entire five-day trip through the nation’s capital and surrounding landmarks has made an impact on the way she feels about her country and herself.
“It’s made me more patriotic and also makes me feel less afraid to be myself,” says Jordan. “If you are yourself, you will attract the right people, and I feel like I’ve done that during this trip.”
