QUITTING SMOKING? START HERE

Keys Ahec Partners With Tobacco Free Florida

ALEX RICKERT

Keys residents looking to kick their smoking habit for good will have even more support on their side thanks to a partnership between Keys Area Health Education Centers (AHEC) and Tobacco Free Florida (TFF).

Already known as one of the Keys’ largest advocates for community and children’s health and education, AHEC’s tobacco cessation services are offered for free within Monroe County. Those looking to quit can choose their preferred participation method with local tobacco treatment counselors, and for a limited time, group quit session participants are eligible for $50 to $125 gift cards for attending.

Quit Smoking Now is a fourweek, in-person, one-hour-per-session group course that works with clients on the process of planning, quitting, managing triggers and preventing relapse. Quit Smoking Now sessions are held throughout the Keys, with all clients eligible for two free disbursements of nicotine replacement therapy.

Tools to Quit is a one-time group counseling session preparing clients for the journey to quit smoking by reviewing steps in the process and identifying participants’ needs and challenges to give them a head start in the quitting process. Participants receive one free disbursement of nicotine replacement therapy and may return for another session if they need further support.

Clients may also participate virtually in Tools to Quit via a Zoom meeting available three days per week in Monroe County, and if none

The Bucket List Bridge

of the prior options are viable for clients due to health or other considerations, counselors can arrange to conduct a telephone counseling session.

“Working with Tobacco Free Florida and the state surgeon general has allowed us to not only provide no-cost nicotine replacement therapy such as patches, gum and lozenges, but now also gift cards to Publix ranging from $50 to $125,” said Keys AHEC CEO Michael Cunningham. “There’s never been a better time to enroll.”

Responsible for more than 480,000 deaths each year, cigarette smoking is the leading cause of preventable death in the United States, according to TFF. Every year, smoking claims 32,300 lives in Florida alone. For every person who dies because of smoking, at least 30 more live with a serious illness related to smoking, meaning that more than 16 million Americans live with a disease caused by smoking.

The body begins to heal within hours after quitting. According to TFF, two to five years after quitting, an individual’s risk of stroke is reduced to that of a non-smoker’s. In five years, the chance of cancers of the mouth, throat, esophagus and bladder is cut in half. In 15 years, the risk of coronary heart disease is back to that of a non-smoker’s.

More information is available by calling 305-743-7111, ext. 205 or visiting keysahec.org/tobacco-cessation. Health care providers can provide client referrals by completing a Tobacco Cessation referral form and emailing it to tobacco@ahec. ufl.edu. For additional resources with even more support to help quit smoking, visit tobaccofreeflorida. com/quityourway.

80-YEAR-

Old Paul Todd Will Tackle The 2023 Seven Mile Run With Three Generations Of Family

ALEX RICKERT alex@keysweekly.com

For some, the Seven Mile Bridge run is a competitive dogfight at the front of the lead pack. For others, it’s an opportunity to take a pretty sweet selfie at the top of “the hump,” or perhaps just “beat the bus.”

For the Young family, the 2023 bridge run will check off one more item on a multigenerational bucket list.

The first time Chris Todd Young, executive director of Habitat for Humanity of the Middle Keys, ran a race with her dad, she had barely cracked double digits. Just 10 years old, she entered the 1980 Sarasota Herald Tribune 10K in the 13 & Under division, finishing the race in just over 64 minutes as her father Paul Todd crossed the line just 30 seconds behind her.

Though it would take another 36 years before the pair toed the same start line again, their next race had a third generation in tow, as Young’s daughter Caidyn joined the father-daughter duo at the 2016 Duck Key Turkey Trot.

With barely a month to go until his 80th birthday, Todd will make the journey down from Nokomis, Florida to once again lace them up with his daughter and granddaughter. According to him, racing with his family in his first tangle with the bridge is a prime “bucket list” opportunity.

“We’re making (Caidyn) do it with us, which is funny because she’s not a runner,” Young told the Weekly with a laugh. “I told her, ‘We’ve gotta get to the top of the hump, and we’ve gotta get a picture with dad. Then you can fall out.”

Though the full field for the 2023 race has yet to be revealed, if Todd ran in last year’s race, he would finish in a tie as the secondoldest participant. Even still, Young doubts the buses will catch her father, who still runs at least two days per week.

“He’s definitely going to beat the bus,” she said. “And he’s gonna beat me, unfortunately.”

When asked why he chose such a sweaty endeavor as his 80th birthday present, Todd’s answer is one that should resonate with most who’ve braved the bridge.

“I just wanted to see if I could do it.”

Bridge To Close On Saturday Morning

Please be advised that the Seven Mile Bridge will close from about 6 to 9 a.m. for the 2023 Seven Mile Bridge Run. Motorists should plan to be on their destination’s side of the bridge before 6 a.m. to avoid delays. For more race information, including packet pickup, shuttle times and parking info for runners, visit 7mbrun.com.

JASON KOLER jason@keysweekly.com