News and Events
The Tobacco Free Partnership of Highlands County Started 2017 with a Bang!
March 13, 2017
The Tobacco Free Partnership of Highlands County had a busy beginning of 2017 with two sponsorships.
The Greater Sebring Chamber of Commerce Annual Banquet was the first and was held on January 26,2017. The banquet gathered over 700 employers and business leaders in Highlands County and recognized their achievements over the year. The Highlands County Tobacco Free Partnership decided to sponsor this event because it would give them the opportunity to network with a multitude of business leaders and provide them with information on the benefits of employer cessation and tobacco free workplace policies.
“We were once again very pleased with the outcome of this sponsorship, as this is the second time we have sponsored this event. We are looking forward to making positive changes in Tobacco Free Worksites in Highlands County,” said Amanda John, Community Health Advocate with QuitDoc Foundation.
Pictured L to R: Karen Ramos, Simanthe Watson, Kiara Swift attend the Highlands County Fair
The Tobacco Free Partnership of Highlands County and the Highlands County SWAT Chapter also participated in the annual Highlands County Fair from February 10-18th, 2017. The fair has become an annual sponsorship for the TFP and this year the booth was focused on smokeless tobacco. The Highlands County Fair took place over 8 days in Highlands County and included fair rides, an exhibit hall, live stock show, and more. It captured community members, business leaders, youth and parents from all over the county, who were provided with information on the dangers of smokeless tobacco and secondhand smoke exposure.
Moreover, since it was the week before “Through With Chew Week,” the TFP and SWAT Clubs kicked off the celebrations a week early, by centering their booth design around the holiday. The students showed up with their SWAT T-shirts on, hand-made signs and TWCW material provided by the Bureau of Tobacco Free Florida. They also displayed other educational items such as “Mr. Gross Mouth,” and “Mr. Dip Lip,” which were a big hit!
“I can’t get over how much exposure we received this year. I am so excited that we were able to reach so many people and deliver the smokeless tobacco messaging we did, especially since the Highlands County smokeless tobacco rate is much higher than the state,” said Amanda John. “The SWAT Clubs also had a great presence this year and helped attract the younger crowd to the booth, it made it much more exciting and lively.”
