SpeakOUT wants youth for tobacco education

Program trains young leaders to educate peers

GRANT COUNTY — The American Cancer Society is searching for 35 youth in Grant County who want to make a difference in the lives of their peers.

The organization scheduled a workshop in January called SpeakOUT, which trains 14 through 17-year-olds in educating others about the dangers of tobacco. The organization puts the workshop on in partnership with the Grant County Health District and Teens Against Tobacco Use.

According to the most recent data from the Washington State Department of Health, 19.1 percent of senior high school students in Grant County reported in 2005 they currently use cigarettes, slightly less than the state average of 19.7 percent.

Shannon Morse, community relationship manager with the American Cancer Society, said teens involved with the program form clubs or organizations within the school or community. Students attending the conference will also deliver a presentation to elementary and middle school students on the harmful effects of tobacco.

Alana Tebow, tobacco prevention coordinator for the health district, said the idea is for older students to educate the younger students so by the time they are older, they already know about tobacco's effects.

Students give the presentations through another program by the American Lung Association, called Teens Against Tobacco Use. The program includes teens going undercover to buy cigarettes from local stores.

"It's not cool," Tebow said. "Makes you're hair stink, makes your clothes stink. And, it's expensive."

Tebow said cigarettes also cause lung cancer, lung disease, heart disease and death.

She advised parents not to leave cigarettes sitting out for their children to find.

"It just needs to be kept from little hands," she said.

For more information, contact Shannon Morse at (509) 455-4351.