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A WCC Woman's Story And The Effects of Smoking
Cougar Cry
By: Cathy Annas, WCC Tobacco Use
Prevention Coordinator
Tobacco use has been identified as the leading
cause of premature death and disease in the United
States and North Carolina. Scientific studies have
concluded that cigarette smoking can cause chronic
lung disease, coronary heart disease, stroke, and
cancer. According to Richard Carmona, former
U.S. Surgeon General, “Hie scientific evidence
is now indisputable: secondhand smoke is not a
mere annoyance. It is a serous health hazard that
can lead to disease and premature death in children
and nonsmoking adults." Cigarette smoking plays
a major role in the mortality of U.S. women. Each
year throughout the 1990s, about 2.1 million
years of the potential life of U.S. women were
lost prematurely because of smoking-attributable
diseases and women smokers who die of a
smoking-related disease lose on average 14 years
of potential life according to the 2001 Surgeon
Generals Report on"Women and Smoking.”
And some myths associated with women and
smoking with answers that follow.
♦ It's not hurting anyone but me.
Secondhand smoke causes at least
35,000 deaths a year in nonsmokers
according to the Center for Disease
Control (CDC).
« It is better to smoke; if I quit, I will gain
weight.
Some people do gain weight when they
stop smoking. Others do not. According
to the American Lung Association you
would most likely have to gain 80 or 90
pounds to do as much damage to your
health as smoking one pack of cigarettes
a day.
♦ I have tried to quit, but I just cant.
It is your body and your life. Some who
quit say that it is both the hardest and
the best thing they have ever done.
Judy Parsons, a student in the human services
program, started smoking at age 14. “I believed I
looked cool and would fit in better with fnends.
I became addicted to smoking cigarettes and the
nicotine they contained. I thought if I quit, I
would gain weight and the other kids would think
I was not cool anymore. I did not realize the first
time I lit up a cigarette, the danger and harm I
was doing to myself and others around me. I had
no idea that cigarettes contained so many cancer-
causing agents and chemicals. With every draw I
inhaled, those ingredients collected in my lungs
and with every exhaled smoke and the side stream
smoke fi-om the end of my cigarette, I was affecting
those around me. As a result of my smoking, I
developed a life-threatening lung disease called
bronchitis obliterians. It would not leave me much
time to live, if I did not make some changes. The
only cure would be a lung transplant. My doctor
explained to me that I would not live to see my
youngest daughter start school if I did not stop
smoking. I was harming not only myself but my
children, the ones I loved the most in the world.
After 24 years of smoking, I quit smoking “cold
turkey.” I did notice changes in myself after a few
days. I could smell and taste food better. I coped
by chewing a lot of gum and straws because I did
not want to gain more weight. My routine was to
get a cold glass of water, look up on the shelf at my
medicine bottles, and then look at a picture of my
two girls. After a month, the smell of a cigarette
made me sick. I am thankful to have a longer life.
The enjoyment of spending time with my family
that I would not have had if I had not stopped
smoking."
There are numerous resources available to help
one quit smoking. Hie Quitline NC provides free
support from Sam to midnight, 7 days a week.
Trained tobacco cessation coaches are available to
help create a personalized plan to help you quit.
Call the Quitline NC toll-free at 1-800-QUIT-
NOW. Individual assistance is also available by
contacting Cathy Annas, WCC Tobacco Use
Prevention Coordinator at ext. 6462.
Cowardly Lion: Courage! What makes a king out of a slave?
Courage! What makes the jlag on the mast to wave? Cour
age! What makes the elephant charge his tusk in the misty
mist, or the dusky dusk? What makes the muskrat guard his
musk? Courage! What makes the sphinx the seventh won
der? Courage! What makes the dawn come up like thunder?
Courage! What makes the Hottentot so hot? What puts the
ape’ in apricot? What have they got that I ain't got?
Dorothy, Scarecrow, Tin Woodsman: Courage!
Cowardly Lion: You can say that again! Hunh!
~E. y Harhuri, from the film The Wizard of Oz (1939)
Sherry Thompson, counselor associate
at the Ashe Campus, received the
Appalachian State University’s
prestigious Women of Influence Award.
The award, presented by ASU’s
Women’s Center, recognizes” women
who have made a difference in the
lives of others or made other significant
contributions to the world in which she
lives.”
Learning is like a jigsaw puzzle. When you first
lay the pieces out, it doesn’t make much sense.
When you start to connect the pieces, you then
begin to see how it all fits together.
-Anonymous
WCC receives $75,000 in grant funding to reduce tobacco use
among area college students
The NC Health and Wellness Trust Fund
(HWTF) has awarded Wilkes Community
College $75,000 in grant funding for Phase II of its
Tobacco-Free Colleges Initiative to combat tobacco
use among students at Wilkes Community College,
Ashe Campus of Wilkes Community College, and
Alleghany Center of Wilkes Community College.
The grant is for a 30-month period that began
January 1,2008.
"Too many of our young people are smoking in
college and are exposed to second-hand smoke on
campus,” said Lt. Governor Bev Perdue, HWTF
chair. "We must raise awareness about the
dangers tobacco poses to our health, lower use by
emphasizing prevention, and help current smokers
to quit.”
Tobacco use has been identified as the number one
preventable cause of premature death and disease
in the country. While teen tobacco use has been
declining in North Carolina over the past decade,
smoking among 18-24 year olds has increased
steadily. Over a quarter (28%) of 18-24 year old
North Carolinians smoke, representing the highest
smoking rate across all age groups in our state.
The Tobacco Free Colleges Initiative has been
expanded in this second phase to provide assistance
to all NC campuses in adopting and implementing
comprehensive, campus wide tobacco use policies.
This program will be similar to HWTF’s highly
successful 100% Tobacco Free Schools Initiative,
which worked with all 115 school districts to create
100% Tobacco Free School policies. As a result of
this effort, all of the states 115 school districts will
pass and implement 100% Tobacco Free School
policies by August 2008.
The HWTF-funded Tobacco-Free Colleges
Initiative became operational in January 2006,
and in Phase I awarded grants to 20 organizations
working with 58 college campuses in North
Carolina. A recently released report issued by
the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
concluded that the initiative was successful in its
first year with policy gains, new campus coalitions,
increased QuitlineNC promotions to young adults,
and strong support from college officials.
Wilkes Community College will work to prevent
the initiation of tobacco use, promote tobacco use
cessation, and eliminate tobacco-related health
disparities among area college students ages 18-
24. In addition, funds may be used to eliminate
exposure to second hand tobacco smoke on
campus.
The full list of grant awards'can be viewed at
http://www.heal thwellnccom/hwtfc/pdffiles/
GranteeList-TFCollegesII.pdf.
About the NC Health and Wellness Trust Fund
The NC Health and Wellness Trust Fund makes
North Carolina stronger, both physically and
economically, by funding programs that promote
preventive health. Created by the General Assembly
in 2000 to allocate a portion of North Carolina's
share of the national tobacco settlement, HWTF
has invested $143 million to support preventive
health initiatives and $102 million to fund
prescription drug assistance programs. For more
information, please visit www.HealthWellNC.
New Faces at WCC
whether you’ve needed a transcript request,
placement test, or just wanted to play ping pong,
if you’ve entered the doors of Alumni Hall within
the last four months, you’ve probably noticed
two new faces. Jane Owens Weaver and Jessica
Mitchell were hired by WCC at the beginning
of January, and they are seen frequently in the
halls, hanging posters, talking to students, and
promoting campus events.
Jane Owens Weaver
joins the Wilkes
Community College
staff as the new
Student Activities
Coordinator. She
organizes student
activities, advises
SGA and Cougar
Cry, and assists
with admissions in
Student Services.
Jane brings a breadth
of knowledge and experience that is a product of
working at the Ashe Campus for a year and Surry
Community College for thirteen years prior. In
addition, her expertise with students transcends
all types of demographics, including her work
with at-risk teens and as a coordinator for TRIO,
a federally funded program for first generation
college seekers. Jane’s open mind and welcoming
demeanor offers a warm platform for student
suggestions, opinions, and ideas. Her overall goal
is to strengthen the involvement of students in
activities on campus and offer events that are both
enjoyable and educational.
Jessica Mitchell was
hired in January
as an Admissions
Representative and
Athletic Coach.
Her main job
responsibilities
include informing
high school seniors of
the benefits of Wilkes
Community College,
organizing recreational activities, intramurals,
and coaching. Jessica is the assistant coach of the
women’s basketball and volleyball teams. Jessica
graduated firom Wilkes Central in 2003 and
attended Davidson College where she played four
years of basketball for the Lady W^dcats. Jessica
graduated from Davidson in May of 2007 and
is eager to impart the knowledge and experience
she gained from college athletics into the student
athletes here at WCC. Jessica hopes that her
recent graduation from a four year college will
elevate her ability to communicate with the
students at WCC.
Wilkes Community College is proud to have
Jane Owens Weaver and Jessica Mitchell as a new
addition to their fiimily.