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Youth Tour

Washington Youth Tour – June 15 – 20, 2026

Photo By Tim Webb

Kenergy will select three students to send on an all-expense-paid trip to Washington, D.C., as part of the Washington Youth Tour (WYT).

A panel of judges will choose the co-op’s three delegates and will announce winners in January 2026.

Kentucky Electric Cooperatives coordinates this trip. Read more about the Youth Tour program.

Students will join over 1,500 other delegates representing electric co-ops from across the country. The Washington Youth Tour educates students about the issues facing co-ops, encouraging them to come home to Kentucky and help lead the co-ops in the future. The busy itinerary includes stops at national memorials, Smithsonian museums, the Holocaust Museum, International Spy Museum, Arlington National Cemetery, visit to Capitol Hill to meet with their congressional delegation and more, as well as a visit to Thomas Jefferson’s Monticello.

Eligibility

To be eligible for the Washington Youth Tour, students must:

  • Live in a house powered by Kenergy.  (Whether students live with grandparents or other members of their families does not matter, as long as the house is powered by Kenergy.)
  • Be in the 11th Grade.
  • Earn a minimum 3.0 overall GPA.

Application Information

Complete the 2026 Washington Youth Tour Application and submit by December 1, 2025. In addition, students must:

  • Mail the application to Jeanette Weedman, Kenergy, PO Box 1389, Owensboro, KY  42302-1389. You may also fax to 270-685-2279 or email jweedman@kenergycorp.com.  The application must reach Kenergy’s office no later than 4:30 p.m. on December 1, 2025.
  • Attach a copy of their high school transcript to the application.
  • Attach a copy of their home’s most current Kenergy bill to the application.
  • Submit a 500-1,000-word essay on any subject about which they are passionate by January 12, 2026.  Essays of less than 500 or more than 1,000 words will not be judged. Past winners’ topics have been about life on the farm, love for a grandmother, sports, FFA membership, and a love for reading, among others.  Judges are free to use the topic as part of their selection process, so choose wisely.
2026 WYT ApplicationDownload

Essay Information

  • Essays must not be attached to the application.  Essays must be e-mailed separately to Jeanette Weedman at jweedman@kenergycorp.com.  Only e-mail submissions will be accepted.
  • Essays are due by midnight January 12, 2026.
  • Typed essays only, Microsoft Word document, double spaced, 12-point Times New Roman font only, please. Essay must be in executable format – no pdf.
  • Essays must have the student’s name, high school, home address and phone number typed on the upper right corner of the first page.  (This information will not be given to the judges — only to Kenergy administrative staff who prepare the essays for judging.)

Judges may request personal interviews as part of the process.

Kenergy will announce winners in January 2026.

All WYT delegates must go to Frankfort for an overnight trip March 18-19, 2026. Kenergy pays for this trip as well.  If a student cannot attend the Frankfort trip, he or she will not be allowed to go on the Washington trip June 15 – 20 2026.

DISCLAIMER:  Washington Youth Tour awards will be chosen by a panel of judges selected by Kenergy.  The panel’s decision is final.  All materials, images, resumes, essays and applications submitted by the applicant become the sole and absolute property of Kenergy.  It is the sole decision and discretion of Kenergy to disqualify any applicant who does not comply with any of the entry and participation rules as set forth by the co-op.

For more information about the Washington Youth Tour, please call Jeanette Weedman at 800-844-4832, extension 6157 or direct at 270-689-6157.  Or you may email  jweedman@kenergycorp.com.

NOTE:  Washington Youth Tour trip is subject to cancellation without notice