CHELCO Announces 2026 Youth Tour Delegates
DeFuniak Springs (March 5, 2026) – CHELCO (Choctawhatchee Electric Cooperative, Inc.) announces the completion of its 2026 FECA (Florida Electric Cooperatives Association, Inc) Youth Tour and 2026 NRECA (National Rural Electric Cooperative Association) Youth Tour Delegates.
In the first week of February, chaperoned by CHELCO staff, 22 local high school juniors participated in the FECA-sponsored Youth Tour in Tallahassee, Florida. The day-and-a-half, all-expense-paid trip brought students to the state’s capital for an immersive experience, including mock legislative sessions in the House of Representatives and State Senate, as well as tours of the historic legislative grounds.
The following juniors from schools within CHELCO’s service territory participated in the 2026 Youth Tour:
Andrea Barnhill — Laurel Hill School
Graham Beauchamp — Niceville High School
Layla Bendickson — Baker School
Makenzie Betts — Rocky Bayou Christian School
Evelyn Bollinger — Niceville High School
Calie Brackin — Walton High School
Maddie Caraway — Paxton School
Jocelyn Chumbley — Laurel Hill School
Meredith Deman — Rocky Bayou Christian School
Maria Dos Santos — Freeport High School
Aidan Enriquez — Crestview High School
Grace Fitzgerald — Crestview High School
Ethan Gautney* — Walton High School
Myles Koons* — Rocky Bayou Christian School
Elizabeth Latour — South Walton High School
Alissa Logan — Baker School
Rylen Nelson* — Walton High School
Noah Seeliger — Collegiate High School at Northwest Florida State College
Kiera Wangsgard — Collegiate High School at Northwest Florida State College
Rose Weinacker — Niceville High School
Kaylee Yeakos — Paxton School
Oliver Yoxall — South Walton High School
* CHELCO employee dependents
After returning from Tallahassee, students submitted video reflections on their Youth Tour experience. An independent panel of judges from local energy and electric cooperatives, unassociated with CHELCO, reviewed the submissions and selected the top students to advance as CHELCO’s delegates for the NRECA-sponsored Youth Tour in Washington, D.C., in June.
The four 2026 CHELCO Youth Tour delegates who will represent the cooperative are:
Kaylee Yeakos — Paxton School
Calie Brackin — Walton High School
Noah Seeliger — Collegiate High School at Northwest Florida State College
Rose Weinacker — Niceville High School
In addition, two alternates were chosen in case any of the top delegates are unable to attend:
Aidan Enriquez — Crestview High School
Graham Beauchamp — Niceville High School
“The Youth Tour program has been close to my heart throughout my 13 years at CHELCO, and even before that during my time with other cooperatives,” said CHELCO CEO Steve Rhodes. “Programs like this reflect CHELCO’s commitment to investing in the communities we serve, while inspiring and empowering the next generation of cooperative leaders. Interestingly, some of our tenured CHELCO employees were once Youth Tour participants themselves, carrying the lessons they learned decades ago into the work they do for our members today.”
For more information about CHELCO’s Youth Tour program and how the cooperative is empowering local students, visit https://www.chelco.com/youth-tour.
CHELCO is a not-for-profit electric distribution cooperative serving more than 70,000 accounts in Okaloosa, Walton, Holmes and Santa Rosa counties in the Florida Panhandle.
