Keep BreatheND on its mission
Ruth Urdahl
Jamestown
Tobacco use is the biggest preventable cause of disease and death in North Dakota. Like so many of your readers, I’ve had personal experience with tobacco’s terrible toll. It was devastating and heartbreaking to watch my father-in-law, a life-long smoker, suffer and die from emphysema.
One thousand people die from tobacco-related illnesses every year in North Dakota. I can’t bear to go through that painful experience again. Unfortunately, many families will because tobacco is still a problem.
But, we can end it if we keep BreatheND on its mission to prevent people from ever starting to use tobacco.
Since BreatheND started, smoking rates are down and youth smoking has been cut in half. When you see these successful statistics, remember they’re not just numbers. They represent family and friends who will get the help they need to quit smoking, and our kids who will never start. They represent less sickness and death, and less money spent on smoking-related healthcare. Support SB 2024 to keep this important work going forward. The lives you help save could be your family, your friends, or even your own.