BVHS’s Madison Lee wins D.C. trip

When 17-year-old Madison Lee woke up on the morning of April 20, little did she know that her day was going to be a bit more exciting than other days the Brandon Valley High junior has experienced.

With no inkling of the big surprise that was about to come her way, Lee, dressed in the comforts of a sweatshirt and sweatpants, was thrown for a loop when Jennie Patrick, coordinator of Sioux Valley Energy’s youth-focused EmPower program, burst into the classroom with a bouquet of balloons and big smile.

Patrick’s unexpected visit mimicked that of a Publishing Clearing House prize announcement. With balloons in hand and an oversized faux check, Lee was stunned to learn that she was one of three area teens to score an all-expenses paid trip to Washington, D.C., to take part in the June 8-15 Youth Tour.

Lee, who is typically well spoken, found herself at a loss for words following the surprise announcement.

“I just wasn’t expecting this at all. I didn’t even know that I would get this chance, and I’ve never been to D.C.,” she said. “I expect to meet a lot of new people, and I know this is a big thing all across the nation and I’m just really excited.”

Lee is one of three area teens from this year’s 60-member EmPower group. She said the opportunities EmPower presents is what initially drew her to the youth-centered program.

“I just thought it would be a great opportunity to learn more about co-ops and to meet new people, to experience new things. I joined EmPower because I thought it sounded like fun and a good opportunity to gain more skills that I can apply to school and to everywhere else in my life,” she said. “I think I’ve gained a lot of leadership skills. I learned a lot about how to be in charge of people, how to lead people.”

Lee was able to gain those added skills through various workshops EmPower stages throughout the school year.

“I learned things to prepare for college, how to be a better leader in front of people, just how to interact with people and use our communication skills, and we also learned about our personal skills and how to use that in light of other peoples’ personal skills, and how to interact with others,” she said.

Lee won her trip by earning points through her participation in Empower, attending sessions and volunteering at events.

“We also had an interview at our last session and were asked a lot of questions, like ‘What you would like to see or do if you got the chance to go to D.C.?’ ” she recalls.

Lee, who completed her junior year at Brandon Valley High this spring, is also involved in Art Club, band, and a variety of musical-related endeavors.

While she’s undecided on her career path, she said her EmPower experience is sure to play a part in her eventual choice.

“EmPower has helped me learn more about what it’s like to get ready for college. I learned about my strengths and how I can use those to help others,” she said. “And EmPower has opened up those possibilities.”

ABOUT EmPOWER

EmPOWER will be entering its fourth year with the 2017-18 school year. Students are recruited each spring and are invited to Sioux Valley’s Energy’s annual meeting, which is June 6 at Brandon Valley High School. From there, EmPOWER participants are encouraged to take part in a Youth Excursion to Bismarck, N.D., in late July to tour the generation facilities at Basin Electric. This four-day trip includes tours, networking with students from across the state, and a stop at Bismarck State College where the students have the opportunity for hands on activities from driving a CDL simulator, making their own wind turbine model, solar panels, producing electricity from lemons and even themselves by bicycling to produce energy.

Sessions start in the fall and participants meet on school vacation days at Veterans Day, Martin Luther King Jr Day, Presidents Day, and Good Friday. Meetings are held in Brandon, Colman, and Pipestone, Minn., because student participants hail from the Sioux Valley Energy service territory. During these sessions, students learn about themselves, hear from motivational speakers, become aware of their strengths, develop leadership skills along with teamwork, learn about different occupations through netweaving, and learn what makes the cooperative business model unique by setting up their own Soda Pop Co-op from the members of EmPOWER, creating districts, hiring a manager and assistant manager, and even distributing capital credits. A seven-person advisory committee is voted on by the membership of EmPOWER to help with the EmPOWER program the following year. Lexis Sherron, a BVHS 2017 senior, currently serves on the committee, while Alex Miller and Bethany Malsam will serve on the 2017-18 committee. Throughout the year students accumulate points that are rewarded in travel opportunities and scholarships. 
One of the traveling pieces is the Youth Tour to Washington, D.C. This year, two South Dakota students  - Garrett Satterly, Colman, and Madison Lee, Brandon, traveled to Washington, D.C. June 8-15, and one Minnesota student, Nathan Overgaard, of Luverne, attended the June 10-15 session. Each state is represented by approximately 40 students in D.C. and are joined by more than 1,600 students-plus from around the nation.