More than 50 students, parents and community leaders gathered on Tuesday, April 18 at the Ramada Inn in Greenville for the announcement of the 2000 Washington Youth Tour winners sponsored by Pioneer Electric Cooperative.

The Washington Youth Tour competition is an annual essay contest open to high school juniors in Pioneer's service area and awards a trip to Washington D.C. to two students in recognition for their research into energy related issues.

Linda Horn, director of marketing and economic development for Pioneer said the essay contest is one way the cooperative can help educate young people on the importance of these issues in every day life.

"We feel an obligation to educate the youth of the day on energy related issues and how these issues affect their future," Horn said. "This essay contest encourages students to do research into energy issues and how they have changed our lives and affected our communities."

The guest speaker for this year's award banquet was former Youth Tour Award winner and now district court judge in Lowndes County, Terri Bozeman. During her brief presentation, Bozeman spoke to the students about the importance of setting goals in life and working each day to achieve those goals.

"The more we hold a vision in our minds, the easier it becomes to believe that it will come to life," Bozeman said. "It's inspiring to realize that every creative idea and great invention started out as a dream in someone's mind."

She went on to encourage students to view goals in life as the archer views a target; to see only the target before launching life's arrows.

"Having clear objectives in life is very important, because in the absence of a goal to be achieved you have no standard for judging whether you are getting anywhere," Bozeman said. "Simply, your life can't go according to plan if you have no plan."

After Bozeman's comments, 13 students were named as essay contest winners and awarded a $50 cash prize. Essay winners included Jessica Sullivan and Meredith Moseley from Fort Dale Academy, Angela Peavy from Georgiana High School, Ashley May and Jennifer Cole from Greenville Academy, Pamela McNeil and Alex Huff from Greenville High School, Antonia Deon Tolbert and Janice Jones from Keith High School, Ryan Davis and D.J. Strickland from Lowndes Academy and George Shelton Jr. and Regina Williams from Selma High School.

After the essay winners were announced, D.J. Strickland from Lowndes Academy and

Jennifer Cole from Greenville Academy were selected as the two winners of the 2000 Washington Youth Tour. The six-day trip is scheduled for the third week in June and will include a tour of the nation's capital, meetings with congressmen and an academic "energy battle" against students from other states also participating in the Youth Tour.