Wyoming Through With Chew launches 2^nd Rodeo All-Stars campaign  

CHEYENNE , WY – Wyoming Through With Chew (WTWC) is proud to announce the launch of the 2^nd Annual WTWC All-Stars campaign that honors the best male and female high school rodeo competitors in the state who have pledged to live “Through With Chew.”  In Wyoming , according to the Campaign for Tobacco Free Kids, 21.3% of all male high school students use smokeless or spit tobacco.  During the 2009 WTWC Rodeo All-Stars campaign, 43% of all Wyoming High School Rodeo Association competitors pledged to live “Through With Chew.”   

Jordan Ann Thurston and Jake Mangis were honored as the first-ever WTWC Rodeo All-Stars of the Year.  Both Thurston and Magnis received a $1,000 college scholarship, with Mangis attending the University of Wyoming while Thurston is competing in the collegiate rodeo at Gillette College .  In addition, two student-athletes who pledged to live “Through With Chew” A.J. Fuchs and J.R. Vezain both won national championships at the National High School Finals Rodeo.  Fuchs won the all-around cowboy title while Vezain won a national title in bareback riding.  

“We’re looking forward to building upon the success of the first campaign,” WTWC Program Director Niki Sue Mueller said.  “The campaign exceeded expectations and we’re working hard to continue the campaign’s growth this year.  Tobacco companies want young people to believe that tobacco use is essential to being a successful rodeo competitor.  Clearly, that’s just not the case.  In fact, if you want to be taken seriously as an athlete, you cannot use tobacco products whether its spit or smokeless tobacco or cigarettes.”  

“The launch of the second-year of this campaign is very exciting for us,” TSF Radio Network President Mike Sinnott said.  “Wyoming Through With Chew is a well-respected nationally recognized program, and we’re honored in their confidence in us to manage another campaign in Wyoming . “  

Each week during the spring high school rodeo season, Wyoming Through With Chew will honor the best male and female weekly competitors who have signed the “Through With Chew” pledge.  Nominees for the weekly honor will be accepted from student-athletes, fans, parents, coaches, and the media.  The weekly winner will be determined by a vote of high school rodeo fans from across Wyoming .  Each weekly winner will be eligible for the Wyoming Through With Chew Rodeo Scholarship.  

Wyoming Through With Chew will award, at a minimum, $1,000 in scholarship money for the male and female all-stars of the year, or a minimum of $500 for each winner of the annual award.  TSF Radio Network and Wyoming Through With Chew will work to increase funding for the scholarships.  To be eligible for the scholarship, each high school rodeo competitor must sign the Wyoming Through With Chew All-Stars pledge not to use spit or smokeless tobacco.  All finalists for the Wyoming Through With Chew Scholarship must complete a scholarship application and sit for an interview with the Wyoming Through With Chew All-Stars Scholarship Committee.  Pledges are available for download at www.ThroughWithChew.com.   

Wyoming Through With Chew launched in 2002 and is a resource for tobacco prevention advocates, tobacco users, healthcare providers, and other organizations and individuals who care about tobacco prevention, education, and cessation.  Wyoming Through With Chew is sponsored by the Wyoming Department of Health, Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services Division with funds from the Wyoming Tobacco Settlement Trust.  For more information, go online to www.ThroughWithChew.com.  

“The Sports Flash” (TSF) Radio Network will provide the day-to-day management of the campaign.  TSF Radio Network provides customized, local sports updates to 179 network affiliates in 13 different states, including ten affiliates throughout Wyoming .  TSF Radio Network has experience managing “Tobacco Free” and “No Spit” campaign for the Get Healthy Kentucky; North Carolina ’s Spit Tobacco Education Program; South Carolina ’s Department of Health & Environmental Control; and the Montana Tobacco Use Prevention Program. 

	Jordan Ann Thurston (left) and Jake Mangis were named Wyoming Through With Chew Rodeo All-Stars of the Year at the Wyoming State Finals Rodeo in Douglas, Wyoming on Wednesday, June 24, 2009.

Download the "Through With Chew" Pledge for Student-Athletes

Download the "Through With Chew" Pledge for Coaches

Download the "Through with Chew" Pledge for Parents