TOP PHOTO: Campbell United Director Charlsa Honeycutt educates students at the Campbell County Health Fair held at JMS on Thursday.

 Campbell County Litter Control Officer Glennis Monday educated area fifth graders about the dangers of smoking and vaping at Thursday’s Health Fair held at Jacksboro Middle School.

By Charlotte Underwood

JACKSBORO, TN (WLAF) – Fifth graders from around the county learned about the dangers of tobacco and vaping at the annual Campbell County Health Fair held on Thursday at Jacksboro Middle School.  This year’s event had an Olympic-based theme of “Go for the Gold; Say no to Tobacco.”

The event was very successful and according to some of the teachers, this year was “the best event yet,” according to Coach Ernie Clawson. Clawson, the Campbell High Cougar Basketball Coach, is also the director for Coordinated School Health.

Campbell County Fifth graders got to have fun in the sun and learn about the dangers of smoking and vaping at Thursday’s Health Fair.

Students enjoyed a day of fun-filled activities and games outside while also learning about the dangers of tobacco and vaping, as well as other health-related topics.

Vaping and tobacco use is a “major concern” for the school system.

According to Clawson, there is an “epidemic of vaping in our schools.”

The data also shows that educating kids at the right age can have more of an impact on imparting these important health lessons.

Community Health of East Tennessee (CHET) was represented at Thursday’s Campbell County Health Fair held at JMS.

“Data proves if we can educate the students, we can help mitigate when they are younger. We are trying to educate and help them understand the effects of vaping. A lot of these pens (vape cartridges) can be laced with other substances like Fentanyl and other drugs; the kids need educated on how dangerous this can be,” Clawson said.

Planning for the annual event starts in January each year. Thursday’s health fair was the culmination of the $17,000 project which invests in educating children about health, specifically tobacco, vape and drug related.

A total of 11 local agencies and organizations set up educational booths around the field for the students to visit. Also set up was a series of inflatable obstacle courses, slides, and games that the kids got to do in between visiting the educational booths.

The event started at 8:30 am and ended around 1:30pm. The county’s school nutrition program provided lunch for the students.

Clawson said the kids “had a blast” and “learned a lot.”

“It’s about our kids and the health and safety of our kids, but we also want it to be fun and have activities for them; when they see those inflatables they get excited for the day, but they also get the education they need to make the best choice for their health.”

Agencies represented at this year’s event included:

Freedom Valley Farms, 7th Day Adventist Church (Reversing Diabetes), TNT Produce, CHATY, TN Strong Youth Groups, CHET: Generation Hope, Campbell County Litter Control, Campbell County Health Department, UT College of Nursing and Campbell United.

“We want to thank all of our sponsors, volunteers and the staff at Jacksboro Middle School for making all this possible,” said Clawson. A special thanks to the Campbell County School Nutrition Program for providing food and to the school transportation for providing busses.

2024 Campbell County Health Fair “Go For The Gold – Say No to Tobacco” sponsors included:

Ayers Auction and Real Estate

Be.you.tiful MedSpa

Community Trust Bank

LaFollette Monuments

The Greens at Deerfield

LaFollette Utilities – LUB

Campbell County Litter Control (Sponsored by TDOT)

Campbell United

Shield of Faith

First National Bank

Jack Lynch (County Mayor)

Grace Rehab

Holston Gas

Lace to Pearls

Pete’s Body Shop

7th Day Adventist Church

Ball Farms

LaFollette Mine Supply

Dayspring Health

Doyle’s Tires

Lindsay’s Carpet and Paint

Walden Chiropractic

Brittany Foust (Register of Deeds)

Community Health of East Tennessee

WLAF AM FM TV & DOTCOM

Volunteer Times

LaFollette Press

Byrge Screen Printing (WLAF NEWS PUBLISHED – 05/17/2024-6AM)

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