TOBACCO CALENDAR

 “People die every day from tobacco use, not just on one day of the year.  Consider the many opportunities to raise tobacco use prevention awareness throughout the year.”

January 1,       “New Years” More people stop smoking on this date than any other day by making a New Year’s Resolution to stop smoking.  Celebrate smoke-free living at the beginning of the New Year. 

February 14,   Valentines Day” Send letters to people you care about who smoke, to let them know how much they mean to you.  Ask them to consider stop smoking and to take care of themselves so that they will live a happy and healthy life long into the future.

March 17,       “St. Patrick’s Day” St. Patrick’s Day is known for being lucky.  Get lucky and stop tobacco use today.  Let people know that the odds are against them if they choose to smoke.  1 out of 3 users will die a horrible premature death due to a tobacco related disease.

March 28,       “Kick Butts Day” A United States’, nation-wide, celebration of Tobacco-Free Kids Campaign.”

May 31,          “World No-Tobacco Day” Join with the rest of the world to put an end to a 500-year war that has claimed the lives of over 100 million loved ones.  A good date to think global and act local.

June 19,          “Juneteenth” Celebration of American black slaves being freed from slavery.  Celebrate freedom from slavery and addiction.  Note the remarkable contributions of Blacks who have died from tobacco use.  Let people know that there is more than one form of slavery.  Consider that one of the most well know abolitionist of the 1800’s, Frank Lloyd Garrison, took on tobacco after slavery was ended.

July 4,             “Independence Day” Join the celebration and set up exhibitions on how tobacco use made the New World profitable, with Pocahontas’ husband being the first to sell tobacco to Europe.  Now this product is killing more Americans than all the other top preventable causes of death and grief put together.  TIME TO CARE; time to declare our independence from nicotine.

October 23 – 31, “Red Ribbon Week” Monday of Red Ribbon Week is focused upon “Tobacco” the true gateway drug.  Support this national campaign to fight dangerous drugs in their many forms, even the legal ones.

October 31,     “Halloween” Want to see something really scary?  If children were not exposed to tobacco in the crib, then it was most likely their first Halloween when Big Tobacco gave them something to be really afraid of.  Remember candy cigarettes?  They’re back.  And now they have XMEN, THE HULK, SPIDERMAN and other contemporary children’s movie stars on the packaging of candy cigarettes for kids.  Guess who has been behind it.

November 2,   “Day of the Dead” Celebrate Life and Lost Loved Ones so that the former is better appreciated and the latter never forgotten.

November 16, “Great American Smoke-out” When was the last time you remember a really big ACS Great American Smoke-out in your community?  Help make it happen this year where you live and have people who smoke try to quit for even one day.  This day can be the beginning of a lifelong commitment to themselves and the ones they love.  This date can be the start of “psyching up” and preparing to stop smoking for good on January 1^st.  

November 23, “Thanksgiving” Forget the Macy’s Parade, this year Santa Comes To Town, Where You Live!

December 31, “New Year’s Eve” Time to remind people who choose to smoke to consider making a New Year’s Resolution to “Stop Smoking”.  People who choose to smoke can stop smoking and people who do not smoke can resolve to do at least one thing this year to help make a tobacco-free community - where they live!   

And you can make any day a good time to celebrate a tobacco-free world.