2019 ETREYS Attendees and Scholarship Winners

ETREYS delegates and chaperones from across nine East Texas co-ops built and donated 19 wagons to Shriners Hospital for Children. Jennifer Laurent, Development Officer for the hospital accepted them for the hospital.

10 youth delegates sponsored by WCEC recently attended the 2019 East Texas Rural Electric Youth Seminar (ETREYS) held on the campus of East Texas Baptist University in Marshall. These youth joined 120 other ETREYS participants, each sponsored by one of 9 East Texas electric cooperatives. ETREYS is a leadership camp designed to foster positive ideals, enhance leadership skills, and to teach the cooperative philosophy.

The camp schedule consisted of many leadership and teambuilding exercises. The delegates heard presentations by renowned speakers, including retired professional New York Giants football player Keith Davis; former University of Texas El Paso football player Germard Reed, current UFC fighter Rashad “Daywalker” and comedian and youth speaker Shannon Pickard.

As a team building exercise, groups of delegates worked together to build 19 wagons. These wagons were donated to Shriners Hospital for Children. Speaker, Jennifer Laurent, Development Officer at Shriners told the students about the mission of Shriners, which is to provide medical care to children with neuromusculoskeletal conditions, burn injuries and other special healthcare needs, regardless of the families ability to pay. The wagons will be used by the families seeking care, many times as a fun way for the children getting treatment to get from one venue in the hospital to another.

Delegates display their certificates of completion for ETREYS 2019.

The delegates that represented WCEC for ETREYS 2019 were Dalton Beal, Lindale; Tahjae Black, Mineola; Isabella Crawford, Alba-Golden; Remington Coleman, Mineola; Kendal McAdoo, Winnsboro; Kobe McAdoo, Winnsboro; Alexis O’Neal, Quitman; Marcus Pollard, Quitman; Stephanie Robertson, Grand Saline; Avery von Reyn, Quitman. Kristen McMillian, Winnsboro, elected by her peers at the 2018 camp, returned this year to help lead the seminar as a Youth Director.

At the seminar, Kobe McAdoo was awarded the Juan D. Nichols scholarship valued at $750 and Isabella Crawford received a $750 scholarship. Alexis O’Neal was elected by the other campers as WCEC’s Youth Director. She’ll return to help lead the ETREYS 2020.

WCEC CEO/General Manager Debbie Robinson said, “I’m so pleased that our cooperative is able to offer this opportunity to our regional youth. ETREYS gives students valuable tools to help them in life, and along their chosen paths. I look forward to watching them apply these progress in their academic and career accomplishments.”