Winner of the UAPB/MISRGO/SOS Soccer Contest Talks About Quitting Smoking

The Minority Initiative Sub-Recipient Grant Office (MISRGO) at the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff (UAPB) and Stamp Out Smoking (SOS) has successfully completed a public education initiative to encourage Hispanic men to quit smoking by giving away a sweepstakes package for four to a soccer game in Dallas, Texas.  The initiative was entitled “Be the best man you can be, for you and your family! Smoke-free!”

MISRGO/UAPB and SOS in partnership with Univision Arkansas announced the Grand Prize Winner Friday, July 12, on-the-air.  Mr. Alejandro Garcia and his family won four tickets to a soccer game in Dallas, Texas this fall; a one night stay in a Dallas hotel; and a $100 gas card.

Monica:  Mr. Alejandro, why did you decide to call the hotline for this promotion?

Alejandro:  Well, first and foremost, to quit smoking, because I smoke.

Monica:  Why do you want to quit?

Alejandro:  First, for my health and also for my family to be healthy.

Monica:  Does your family like that you smoke?

Alejandro:  My wife says it smells bad.  Laughter.

Monica:  There is also a law, Act 811, that says you can't smoke in the car with children under the age of 14.

Alejandro:  I didn't know that, but now I do.

Monica:  So what are you going to do to help you quit smoking?

Alejandro:  I'm not going to carry cigarettes with me; I'm going to avoid areas where people are smoking; and I'm going to use patches to help me quit.

Monica:  How do you feel about winning the trip?

Alejandro:  Happy!  My family is excited too.

Monica:  Is there anything you would like to say to our audience.

Alejandro:  Nothing more than let's quit smoking for the health of our community.

Stickyz Fingers Restaurant and Bar Goes Smoke-free

Smoke-free Restaurant Award presented to Stickyz Fingers by Katherine Donald
from The Coalition for a Tobacco Free Arkansas, a MISRGO sub-grantee.

October 14, 2011, about twenty tobacco prevention advocates in Little Rock participated in Dine Out for Lunch Day at Stickyz Fingers to express appreciation for the restaurant’s recent adoption of a smoke-free workplace policy to protect the health of its workers and patrons.

Secondhand smoke exposure is the third leading cause of preventable death in the U.S. killing more than 53,000 non-smokers each year. In Arkansas, an estimated 510 non-smokers die, annually, from breathing secondhand smoke. The 2006 U.S. Surgeon General’s Report concluded that there is no safe level of exposure to secondhand smoke and that establishing smoke-free environments is the only proven way to prevent exposure.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) estimates that smoke-free restaurants can expect to save about $190 per 1000 square feet each year in lower cleaning and maintenance costs. [Michigan Department of Community Health, (2000)]. The EPA also estimates a saving of $4 billion to $8 billion per year in building operations and maintenance costs if comprehensive smoke-free indoor air policies are adopted nationwide. (U.S. Department of Health and Human Services: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, “Clean Indoor Air Regulation Fact-sheet. “National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion. April 2001.)

Advocates celebrate new smoke-free policy

Join with the Coalition for a Tobacco Free Arkansas as it gives kudos to Stickyz Fingers for going smoke-free, and as it asks other restaurants and bars that currently allow smoking, to adopt a smoke-free workplace policy to protect the health of their workers. For more information, contact the Coalition for a Tobacco Free Arkansas at (501) 687-0345.