Moorefield High Rising Junior Sara Baldwin said the Foundation for Rural Service Youth Tour not only was a learning experience, but it also was a lot of fun and introduced her to aspects of Washington, D.C., that she hadn’t seen before.
“My trip to Washington, D.C., for the youth tour was amazing. It was very educational with a lot of sightseeing, and although I have been to (D.C.) many times, I’m still surprised how big the nation’s capital is and how much there is to learn and do,” she said.
Sara, sponsored by Hardy Telecommunications, spent June 3-7 in D.C. She was one of about 100 students from all over the country in attendance at the tour. The trip involves visiting many of the city’s historic sites as well as learning about telecommunications and the challenges faced by service providers in rural areas.
The students also hear about governmental processes and federal agencies that oversee the telecommunications industry. The group visited the Federal Communications Commission, where they heard from Commissioners Brendan Carr and Anna Gomez. In recent years, they’ve also visited the office of one or more of their respective state’s congressional delegation. Sara visited with staff from the office of Congressman Alex Mooney. Mooney is one of West Virginia’s two members of the House of Representatives.
“I listened to FCC Commissioners and attorneys tell us how they help rural communities get better connected when they are far apart,” Sara said. “I gained new insight on rural connections and appreciate how much Hardy Telecommunications does for our community.”
The Youth Tour also takes the students to many of the famous historical landmarks in D.C. The group toured the U.S. Capitol and visited the Lincoln Memorial, World War II Memorial, and Vietnam War Memorial during a night walking tour. During a visit to the Smithsonian Institution on the National Mall, Sara visited the Air and Space Museum and the Natural History Museum, then her group walked to the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum.
Another highlight was seeing the Changing of the Guard ceremony at Arlington National Cemetery’s Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, she said.
The students also saw the play “Shear Madness” at the Kennedy Center, an experience made possible by the Tim Owens Memorial Fund.
Sara also made new friends with whom she’ll stay in touch thanks to Hardy Telecommunications.
“My favorite part of the trip was gaining new friends. Thank you for sponsoring me on this trip to D.C. I really appreciate the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity… I wouldn’t be able to contact the friends that I have from Washington state and South Dakota if it weren’t for Hardy Telecommunications connecting us to other people,” she said.
Hardy typically sponsors one student from Moorefield and East Hardy high schools for the tour, but no EHHS student applied this year.
The Foundation for Rural Service (FRS) was established in 1994 as a non-profit 501(c)(3) by NTCA-The Rural Broadband Association. FRS programs advance rural communities by focusing on education for rural youth, encouraging community development and introducing policymakers to the challenges of providing broadband services in rural communities.