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Powerful Living Then & Now E By Hayley Leatherwood


ach year, Oklahoma’s electric cooperatives send outstanding high school juniors on Youth Tour, an all-expenses-paid trip to Washington, D.C. Co-ops use this opportunity to empower


youth. Today, there are many alumni who have developed dreams and dedicated their careers to empowering their own communities. Here we offer a glimpse of their endeavors and triumphs.


The Agriculture Advocate


Garrett King drew inspiration and motivation from his family’s peanut farming operation between two little Oklahoma towns, Eakly and Binger. King’s grandfather, the late Floyd L. King, worked for decades with titans of Oklahoma’s political his- tory to promote and preserve the federal peanut program. This legacy is a source of personal pride for King, and inspired his interest service.


in public


“I learned from a very young age, even if you want nothing to do with government, the govern- ment is going to have something to do with you, so you might as well be engaged in the process,” King says.


At age 15 King turned this lesson into action. He started an organization he coined the “Oklahoma Youth Union” for young people who couldn’t vote to voice political concerns. “I viewed elected offi cials as ‘gods on Olympus,’


really,” King says. “Their advocacy and representa- tion were so inspiring.” Caddo Electric Cooperative selected King as a


Garrett King, 2003 Youth Tour delegate


Youth Tour delegate in 2003; this served to further his interest in public service.


“Youth Tour not only played a huge role in my desire to serve my friends and neighbors, but it also sharpened my focus to federal concerns,” King says. In 2007, at age 21, King joined Rep. Frank Lucas’s personal staff—his ‘climb up Olympus’ had begun. During King’s years of service, Lucas became the fi rst Oklahoman to chair the House Agriculture Committee.


“Garrett King’s service on my personal staff dur- ing the long fi ght for the 2014 Farm Bill was cru- cial,” Lucas says. “His rich background in production agriculture in western Oklahoma made Garrett an invaluable aide to me in my effort to bring a unique- ly Oklahoman perspective to bear on federal farm policy.”


An especially poignant part of King’s congressio- nal service was the opportunity to discuss with his now-deceased grandfather their shared involvement with federal farm programs. This exemplifi ed for King what he calls a “cardinal truth of public ser- vice”: it never really stops—it’s generational and there are “no fi nal victories.” “Co-op kids must understand the only standards they need to meet are theirs,” King says. “They mustn’t let anyone tell them because they came from a small town or farm or they are not connected to the ‘right’ network that they cannot achieve their goals.”


The Master Planner


“There’s something about being in D.C. that is so humbling,” Jillianne Tebow says. “Being there with kids from around the nation—it’s incredible.” Her trip in 2003, sponsored by Indian Electric


Cooperative, was also a catalyst for introducing Tebow to the world of rural electric cooperatives. Youth Tour eventually led to her receiving an intern- ship with the Oklahoma Association of Electric Cooperatives (OAEC), which in turn developed into her current career with Central Rural Electric Cooperative (CREC). Tebow began her full-time position as a commu- nications specialist in 2008. Now Tebow is the vice president of corporate operations, overseeing fi ve different departments and working with the overall operations and direction of the cooperative. David Swank, CREC CEO, says Tebow provides


signifi cant leadership as the cooperative confronts a changing business environment.


20 WWW.OK-LIVING.COOP


“The advancement in the organization is a testa- ment to Jillianne’s commitment to serving the co- operative and members, and we are excited about the future of CREC because of young leadership talent like Jillianne,” Swank says. Looking back, Tebow says Youth Tour was the true jumping off point for “falling in love” with the co- operative servant-leadership mentality. She also en- joys remembering the history of CREC, which was founded by 10 men who, at the time, had a some- what outlandish sounding notion of providing elec- tricity to their rural community. “People laughed at them, said it couldn’t be done, but they banded together and 75 years later here we are, enjoying the American spirit of having a dream and being able to change the world.” Tebow views electricity as the engine to the na- tion’s economy, and she says she will never take for granted the opportunities and accomplishments made from having power.


“I am that small piece of the nation’s engine, and I love that I can do that every single day.”


Jillianne Tebow, 2003 Youth Tour delegate


Photos by Hayley Leatherwood


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