My Goal? Stopping Big Tobacco! by Rhianna Dumas

My name is Rhianna Dumas and I’m 14. I was born in Guthrie, Oklahoma, and stayed there until I was 7, now I live in Oklahoma City. This past year I joined a program called YAHL. YAHL stands for Youth Action for Health Leadership and we work with TSET to get better health choices at school. For example, getting the water tested, having healthier options at lunch, and 60 minutes of activity. We also work to stop Big Tobacco from targeting teens. I joined YAHL because I knew that stopping Big Tobacco was important to me.

Stopping Big Tobacco is important to me because I’ve had family members use tobacco and the journey of healing from it was very hard. The tobacco campaign, Counter Act Tobacco, will help me accomplish my goal because we’ll be collecting surveys on people’s opinions about tobacco use in teens which can be used as data. The trainings we attend have helped my goal because it allowed me to become an official member and get one step closer to helping my community more.

My work toward my personal goal will help my community slowly work its way to being tobacco-free. There will eventually be less vaping in schools with my efforts. I hope to educate parents, who will hopefully open their eyes and see how dangerous tobacco truly is. Others in my community will finally be heard if they have the same thoughts as me, in the future. More voices can be heard and more people can be encouraged to make a change. Others in the community can join me in the work by spreading the word about what we’re doing and by using their voice like I am.

My Goal? Stopping Big Tobacco! by Rhianna Dumas

My name is Rhianna Dumas and I’m 14. I was born in Guthrie, Oklahoma, and stayed there until I was 7, now I live in Oklahoma City. This past year I joined a program called YAHL. YAHL stands for Youth Action for Health Leadership and we work with TSET to get better health choices at […]

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Giving a Voice to the Voiceless by My Nguyen

Hello, my name is My Nguyen, I am 15 and I live in Oklahoma City. I’m a member of YAHL, which stands for Youth Action for Health Leadership. In YAHL, we work on two youth-led campaigns: CounterAct Tobacco and Elevate Student Health. I joined YAHL because it is a really good way to help my […]

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My Journey with YAHL by Mayra Amezcua

Hi, my name is Mayra and I’m from Howe Public Schools, I am currently 14 years old. I’m a part of an organization called Youth Action for Health Leadership or YAHL. I joined YAHL to try something new. When I joined I was hoping to gain leadership skills, better public speaking skills, and earn scholarships. […]

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Working Hard to Make a Difference by Essence Felder

Hello, I’m Essence Felder. I currently live in OKC, Oklahoma and I’m 16. YAHL stands for Youth Action for Health Leadership. YAHL’s main goal is to better youth’s lives as a whole, be it through CounterAct or Elevate. I decided to join because I loved that YAHL is not only pointing out problems in the […]

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Why I Joined YAHL by Deiondra Howard

I am Deiondra Howard. I’m from Coalgate, Oklahoma and I’m currently 16 years old. I chose to join YAHL because I want to improve my community. As a teen, in high school, I am exposed to a lot of vaping on a daily basis. I think that YAHL can help to improve the problem of […]

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Making a Difference in Coalgate, Oklahoma by Brecken Hunt

Hello everyone, my name is Brecken, I live in Atoka, but go to school in Coalgate, and I am 16. I work with a student-led organization called YAHL. YAHL stands for Youth Action for Health Leadership. I joined for two reasons. First, I wanted to have a bit of fun, and second, I want to […]

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YAHL Impacts My Community for the Better by Carina Chen

Hello, my name is Carina Chen. I am fourteen years old, I am from Oklahoma, and last, but definitely not least, I am a member of the leadership team at YAHL. YAHL stands for Youth Action for Health and Leadership and they are a health activist group working towards two campaigns: Counteract Tobacco and Elevate […]

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Being a YAHL Leadership Team Member – Casey Stewart

Hello, I’m Casey Stewart from Wynnewood High School. YAHL was introduced to our school around January of 2022. When I heard about YAHL, I initially signed up because I wanted prizes from the prize store, but during events and trainings I have grown to love everything about the program. My absolute favorite thing I have […]

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Why Health Activism Matters to Me by Lauren Pinner

Hi my name is Lauren Pinner, I live in OKC, and I am 14 years old. Last year I joined the YAHL program at my school. Yahl is a youth leadership program, and we are trying to make Oklahoma a healthier place. I decided to join the yahl program because it has amazing goals and I believe that it can truly make a difference for our future generations. Health activism matters to me because many kids aren’t taught healthy habits at a young age, and teens are getting targeted by tobacco companies.

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Why I Joined the YAHL Team

Hello, my name is Karli Everett from Chelsea, Ok and I’m 14 years old. I am apart of a program called YAHL. YAHL is a youth led organization to help teens have better physical activity and healthy foods along with having clean drinking water. I hope to gain more leadership skills along with better public […]

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