WTWC All-Stars of the Year will share
$1,000 in scholarship money
December 16, 2009
CHEYENNE, WY –
Wyoming Through With Chew (WTWC) is proud to
announce the launch of the 2nd Annual
WTWC All-Stars campaign that honors the best male
and female high school rodeo competitors in the
state who have pledged to live “Through With Chew.”
In Wyoming, according to the Campaign for Tobacco
Free Kids, 21.3% of all male high school students
use smokeless or spit tobacco. During the 2009 WTWC
Rodeo All-Stars campaign, 43% of all Wyoming High
School Rodeo Association competitors pledged to live
“Through With Chew.”
Jordan Ann Thurston and Jake Mangis were honored as
the first-ever WTWC Rodeo All-Stars of the Year.
Both Thurston and Magnis received a $1,000 college
scholarship, with Mangis attending the University of
Wyoming while Thurston is competing in the
collegiate rodeo at Gillette College. In addition,
two student-athletes who pledged to live “Through
With Chew” A.J. Fuchs and J.R. Vezain both won
national championships at the National High School
Finals Rodeo. Fuchs won the all-around cowboy title
while Vezain won a national title in bareback
riding.
“We’re looking forward to building upon the success
of the first campaign,” WTWC Program Director Niki
Sue Mueller said. “The campaign exceeded
expectations and we’re working hard to continue the
campaign’s growth this year. Tobacco companies want
young people to believe that tobacco use is
essential to being a successful rodeo competitor.
Clearly, that’s just not the case. In fact, if you
want to be taken seriously as an athlete, you cannot
use tobacco products whether its spit or smokeless
tobacco or cigarettes.”
“The launch of the second-year of this campaign is
very exciting for us,” TSF Radio Network President
Mike Sinnott said. “Wyoming Through With Chew is a
well-respected nationally recognized program, and
we’re honored in their confidence in us to manage
another campaign in Wyoming. “
Each week during the spring high school rodeo
season, Wyoming Through With Chew will honor the
best male and female weekly competitors who have
signed the “Through With Chew” pledge. Nominees for
the weekly honor will be accepted from
student-athletes, fans, parents, coaches, and the
media. The weekly winner will be determined by a
vote of high school rodeo fans from across Wyoming.
Each weekly winner will be eligible for the Wyoming
Through With Chew Rodeo Scholarship.
Wyoming Through With Chew will award, at a minimum,
$1,000 in scholarship money for the male and female
all-stars of the year, or a minimum of $500 for each
winner of the annual award. TSF Radio Network and
Wyoming Through With Chew will work to increase
funding for the scholarships. To be eligible for
the scholarship, each high school rodeo competitor
must sign the Wyoming Through With Chew All-Stars
pledge not to use spit or smokeless tobacco. All
finalists for the Wyoming Through With Chew
Scholarship must complete a scholarship application
and sit for an interview with the Wyoming Through
With Chew All-Stars Scholarship Committee. Pledges
are available for download at
www.ThroughWithChew.com.
Wyoming Through With Chew launched in 2002 and is a
resource for tobacco prevention advocates, tobacco
users, healthcare providers, and other organizations
and individuals who care about tobacco prevention,
education, and cessation. Wyoming Through With Chew
is sponsored by the Wyoming Department of Health,
Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services Division
with funds from the Wyoming Tobacco Settlement
Trust. For more information, go online to
www.ThroughWithChew.com.
“The Sports Flash” (TSF) Radio Network will provide
the day-to-day management of the campaign. TSF
Radio Network provides customized, local sports
updates to 179 network affiliates in 13 different
states, including ten affiliates throughout
Wyoming. TSF Radio Network has experience managing
“Tobacco Free” and “No Spit” campaign for the Get
Healthy Kentucky; North Carolina’s Spit Tobacco
Education Program; South Carolina’s Department of
Health & Environmental Control; and the Montana
Tobacco Use Prevention Program. For more
information, contact TSF Radio Network’s Mike
Sinnott at (517) 927-4570.
