Share Your Story
How is commercial tobacco impacting you? Your friends? Your family? Your community?
Our 'Share Your Story' project gathers real life experiences and perspectives from our members, partners, and people in the community. We especially love hearing from younger people!
How To Share Your Story
Stories can be anonymous. You don't have to tell us your name, unless you want to. Feel free to share where you live (county or city), work, and/or what you do.
We may use all or part of your story on our website, in our social media posts, in our presentations, or in our outreach materials.
Write Your Story
Use the Google form below to share your comments, experiences, and perspective. The form will ask if you want us to use your name, or keep your story anonymous. It's up to you!
Record Your Story
Record an audio or video message on your smartphone or computer.
Email it to us at organizer@washingtonbreathes.org.
What We're Hearing
We have collected personal perspectives through written responses and audio interviews at in-person events. Here's a sampling of what we've heard:
Getting people to start, they're like, oh, look at these fun flavors and then they're like...they're addicted to it. But I think versus just like regular cigarettes, most kids nowadays don't want to try that, right, cause that doesn't have a nice flavor to it other than sort of nicotine.
- 12th Grader from Goldendale at the WA Prevention Summit. October 2024.
Vaping is a big issue in our school. It is so normalized that youth believe the majority of their peers are vaping.
- Spokane school staffer at the WA Prevention Summit. October 2024.
Vaping is so common in our schools that some students are afraid to go to the bathroom during the school day. Vaping sensors in the restrooms are not the answer. They are overwhelming to staff and didn't improve the situation. Comprehensive commercial tobacco education, prevention, and treatment is the answer in our current situation.
- Lisa Pilkinton, Health Educator, Chelan Douglas Health District, and former public school teacher. November 2024.
I would ask what's important to us, you know, are the commercial interests of tobacco and vaping companies superior to our need to protect kids, to ensure that they're growing up in safe and supportive environments, to ensure that they have full access to their economic potential?
And I don’t see that there is a moral equivalency or a valid trade-off between supporting those tobacco lobbies and supporting our kids.
-Joe Neigel, Director of Prevention Services at Monroe School District and Monroe Community Coalition Coordinator. October 2024.
Companies via commercials, in-person ads, displays in stores are directed at youth. That needs to stop. We do CANS surveys and inform businesses about what we see, but it's only a suggestion. There needs to be a greater incentive (or sanction) to do the right & legal thing. Even some products look like candy (remember the candy cigs?). That should not be.
- anonymous, WA Prevention Summit participant, Oct. 2024
My 26-year old son never used a single substance until his freshman year at WSU. He was targeted on Instagram and began using JUUL. He has "graduated" to products/vapes that have over 5000 "puffs" on them. He specifically told me that he would quit if the industry eliminated flavors! We need to eliminate flavors and we need legislation prohibiting "youth" packaging and targeted advertising to youth! My son is addicted - he has been for 8 years!
- anonymous, WA Prevention Summit participant, Oct. 2024