Awards Ceremony Honors Winners of County Youth Anti-Tobacco Multimedia Contest

Recently at the JC Penney Auditorium on the UMSL campus, the Saint Louis County Department of Health (DOH) honored students for their efforts to spread the word about the harmful effects of tobacco at the O2 Awards. The awards ceremony was the culmination of this fall’s multimedia contest, which invited students across Saint Louis County to submit entries that “Share the Truth about Tobacco” through video, photography, digital art or poetry/lyrics.

The contest was the creation of the DOH Let’s Face It youth initiative, called AirO2Dynamic, in an effort to get youth engaged in fighting tobacco marketing. A recent report from the Federal Trade Commission shows that tobacco companies spend nearly $10 billion annually advertising their products in the United States, particularly to young people. The youth leaders of AirO2Dynamic, from schools around the county, wanted to challenge all local youth to creatively express anti-tobacco messages.

“The AirO2Dynamic program is youth-led and youth-driven,” said County Executive Charlie Dooley. “This effort demonstrates that these young men and women have a powerful voice, and when they come together they have the ability to make a difference and fight back against big tobacco.”

In Missouri, smoking related illness costs $2.13 billion every year. Missouri has one of the highest death rates from tobacco-related illnesses in the country, and the St. Louis region is one of the worst in the country for asthma. Smoking and exposure to second-hand smoke can trigger severe asthma attacks.

Entries for the multimedia contest were accepted Sept. 8 through Nov. 7, 2011. More than 50 submissions were received from students from 21 different schools across Saint Louis County. Entrants ranged in grade levels from 6th to 12th grade.

Entries were judged by a panel of area professionals in each category. First-place winners received an iPad, second-place received an iPod nano, and third-place received a digital camcorder.

 Digital Art

1. Allison Tielking – Villa Duchesne
2. Stephanie Behrens – Villa Duchesne
3. David Streid – Ladue Horton Watkins High School

 Poetry/Lyrics

1. Nichol Sistrunk – Jennings Senior High School
2. Victor Jordan – McCluer High School
3. Allison Tielking – Villa Duchesne

 Video

1. Justin Jones – Riverview Gardens High School
2. Vernell Futrell – Riverview Gardens High School
3. Anthony Pawnell – Hazelwood East High School

 Photography

1. Carrie Lee – Pattonville High School
2. Kevin Murillo – Pattonville High School
3. Jesse Eberenz – Pattonville High School