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Illinois youth meet Washington leaders
Fifty-eight youths representing rural Illinois spent the week of June 14-21 exploring Washington, D.C. The students met with Illinois congressional leaders and learned about their government during the annual "Youth to Washington" tour. This event, sponsored by the electric and telephone cooperatives of Illinois, began in the late 1950s to introduce rural youths to our democratic form of government and cooperatives. During their journey, the students met young people from all over America while attending Rural Electric Youth Day. Youth Day is a rally, which gathers future leaders together and gives them an occasion to learn from public figures and inspirational speakers. This year's Youth Day agenda included a survivor of the September 11 attack on the Pentagon, Lieutenant Colonel Brian Birdwell, who shared his harrowing experience and miraculous recovery. Birdwell touched on the importance of selfless service and the acceptance of life's challenges. In addition to Youth Day, the students visited the Capitol, the White House, Arlington National Cemetery, the National Cathedral, the Smithsonian Museums, George Washington's home, the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum, and a number of other historical sites. Co-op and homebuilder fight terrorism with energy conservation Roger Huddleston Homes and Eastern Illini Electric Cooperative (EIEC) joined forces on a hot summer weekend to teach local citizens how to fight terrorism. Their weapons included compact fluorescent light bulbs, fuel cells, geothermal heat pumps and an army of experts with common sense advice.
Roger Huddleston says, "Energy efficiency improvements can have the most immediate impact on terrorism. We know we need to be less dependent on foreign oil. Each of us can contribute by decreasing our personal energy expenses." The Energy Independence Day Expo and Open House was held at Roger Huddleston Homes show home site in Mahomet where EIEC built a two-story, 2,000 square foot Cape Cod home with the latest in energy efficiency measures and high-tech home technology. The Illinois Department of Commerce and Community Affairs (DCCA) and other co-sponsors helped out with the event. In addition to a geothermal heat pump, the home has whole-house surge protection, security systems, wireless high-speed Internet, the latest in water conditioning systems and satellite TV service. The co-op also demonstrated a working model of a fuel cell. For more information go to www.eiec.org. 6 ILLINOIS COUNTRY LIVING 4 www.aiec.org Leg pain could be more than just "old age" Peripheral vascular disease (PVD) is a condition in which the arteries that carry blood become narrowed or clogged, interfering with blood flow and sometimes causing pain. Not only can the body's coronary arteries (those around the heart) become clogged with plaque, but so can the arteries supplying blood to your arms and legs. PVD affects about 8 to 10 million people in the United States. It often goes undiagnosed because many people do not experience symptoms in the early stages of the disease, or they mistakenly think the problems they are having are a normal part of aging. Only about half of those individuals with symptoms have been diagnosed with PVD and are seeing a doctor for treatment. A common symptom is claudication, a painful cramping in the leg or hip, particularly when walking. Other symptoms may include numbness, tingling or weakness in the leg. Some people experience a burning or aching pain in their feet or toes while resting, a sore on their foot or leg that does not heal, a cooling or color change in the skin of the legs or feet, or loss of hair on the legs. The disease can affect anyone, although men are somewhat more likely than women to have PVD. Individuals with PVD are at a higher risk for heart disease and stroke. PVD patients frequently have elevated cholesterol levels that contribute to the disease. You can help control your cholesterol level by following a low fat diet. Cigarette smoking is also a strong risk factor for PVD. For many patients, medication, exercise and lifestyle changes can control the symptoms and progression of PVD. Other patients may require a more sophisticated evaluation and procedures or surgeries. Contact your doctor for a screening. September 22 to 28, 2002, is national screening week for PVD. Look for a screening program in your area by visiting the Web site www.legsforlife.org. Source: Char Shallow, a RN HBSCN and Healthcare Assistant at Prairie Cardiovascular Consultants, LTD in Springfield, Illinois. Have you been on the "Youth to Washington" tour?
Since the first "Youth to Washington" tour 43 years ago, the electric and telephone cooperatives of Illinois have sent more than 2,500 students. They've all seen their government in action and met presidents, senators, congressmen and other national leaders. Some have even gone on to hold public office. Throughout the years we have heard from many alumni of the "Youth to Washington" tour but we are still gathering information for our database and would like to receive an address, e-mail address and/or telephone number from all who have participated in the tour. If you, or someone you know participated in one of these tours, please send a note to John Freitag or Linda Comstock, Association of Illinois Electric Cooperatives, P.O. Box 3787, Springfield, IL 62708 or e-mail to lcomstock@aiec.org. Dates for next year's "Youth to Washington" tour are June 13-20, 2003. Interested high school sophomores, juniors and seniors should contact their local electric or telephone cooperative for more details on winning a trip of a lifetime. Geothermal heat pump sales increase Sales of geothermal heat pumps during the past five years have grown on average of more than 22 percent per year. "Our increased market share in our area is due to a more educated energy wise customer," says Brian Houchin, Geothermal Sales Manager for Bratcher Heating & Air Conditioning of Bloomington. Bratcher Heating & Air Conditioning installed nearly 100 ClimateMaster geothermal heat pumps last year and received the top sales award among Illinois dealers. Steve Smith, owner of Entertech, Inc., the Illinois distributor of ClimateMaster geothermal heat pumps, says sales were up 80 percent in 2001, due in part to the rising cost of propane and natural gas. He agrees with Houchin that consumers are more aware of the benefits of geothermal heat pumps now. Although more expensive than typical equipment, geothermal heat pumps pay back with 25 to 50 percent less energy use, better comfort control and lower life-cycle cost. Improved indoor air quality and design flexibility make geothermal heat pumps a valid option for schools and commercial buildings that need to replace old systems or are building new conditioned space. Smith says the installation of geothermal heat pumps in schools is booming in Iowa and Missouri, but has been held back in Illinois because many architects and engineers aren't aware of the advantages. For more information go to www.geoexchange.org. SEPTEMBER 2002 ILLINOIS COUNTRY LIVING 7 Warn your children — don't be like Mike Electric co-op safety officials say there is little to like about a key element of the plot in the new movie "Like Mike" that involves a young boy and a power line. The teen, played by 14-year-old rapper Bow Wow, is shown being struck by lightning while retrieving a pair of sneakers hanging from the high-voltage line. The diminutive boy survives the incident to discover the shock has given him amazing powers that make him an NBA superstar. The scene sends chills through Susan Olander, general counsel of Federated Rural Electric Insurance Exchange, which puts safety at the top of its list of concerns. "To see a scene such as this depicted in a movie that clearly appeals to children is disheartening," Olander said. "Protecting children, protecting the public in general, is very important to us and to rural electric cooperatives. "We've seen a tremendous increase in public contacts [with power lines] in the last two or three years," Olander added. Instead of imparting superpowers, real-life contact with a power line is often fatal. "Just as flying a kite in an electrical storm won't make you a statesman like Ben Franklin, playing around power lines won't make you an NBA star like Michael Jordan," said National Rural Electric Cooperative Association Counsel Jonathan Glazier. "What both activities are likely to make you is deceased," Glazier said. "It is this brutal fact-and not the Hollywood fantasy of 'Like Mike'-that safety professionals see all too often." For more safety information, visit www.SafeElectricity.org. and page 14 of this magazine. Source: Electric Co-op Today, By Bill Pritchord
8 ILLINOIS COUNTRY LIVING www.aiec.org |
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