LOVELOCK - Lovelock's TATU (Teens Against Tobacco Use) team performed a play depicting the dangers of tobacco use in front of 22 Lovelock Frontier Community Coalition (FCC) members and associates at the Lovelock FCC's regular monthly meeting March 19. The group also performed the play at Pershing County Middle School on March 29.
The play was about the life of a young man, Timmy, from his first cigarette and smoking with family and friends, to experimentation with other smoking paraphernalia (like a hookah) and his first visit to a doctor for a minor complaint. The skit concluded with his death due to the complications of tobacco use. The TATU team elaborated briefly on the consequences of tobacco use between each scene of the performance for the benefit of the audience.
The play was written by the group and directed by TATU member Kameron Mitchell. Other members are Shaley Katsaris, Niko Katsaris, Tia Katsaris, Cheyanne Ellis, Courtney Taylor, Ruriko Widmar, Christian Oroane, Monica Hillshire, Katey Gentry and Darby Bequette. Fran Katsaris is the TATU leader and her assistants are Michael Sears and Kevin Machado.
"We have a diverse group and they all work really well together," Fran Katsaris said.
All members except Katsaris and her assistants are students in the Pershing County School District. Niko and Tia Katsaris go to Lovelock Elementary and the rest of the students attend Pershing County High School, Katsaris said.
The program, sponsored by the Frontier Community Coalition, came to Lovelock last October. Katsaris began meeting with interested students at that time.
"To be able to be part of the group the kids had to be smoke free," Katsaris said.
Once organized, the team attended a day of training from the American Lung Association. They were educated on the dangers and current statistics of tobacco use. They were then given the assignment to write a play using the information they had learned.
"The kids met once a month, and the meetings consisted of the kids doing research about the effects of tobacco use, the advertising tactics the tobacco companies use, and they created and practiced their play," Katsaris said.
The play addressed the dangers of tobacco use and how to resist peer pressure.
[[In-content Ad]]
