Congrats on 1 year of being smoke-free

To the editor:

I want to say congratulations to Palmer as it celebrates the one-year anniversary of being a smoke-free city! This is a great time to celebrate the tremendous effort that went into making Palmer businesses smoke-free, and those who were involved in this process deserve to pat themselves on the back.

Smoking and secondhand smoke is the No. 1 preventable cause of death in the U.S., and any step forward in reducing secondhand smoke exposure is a success. Everyone deserves the right to breathe smoke-free air and it is important that we support smoke-free workplaces in Alaska to protect all Alaskans from secondhand smoke.

Thank you to all of you who were involved in the Smokefree Palmer campaign and to all of the businesses that went smoke free! Palmer is a better and healthier place for it, and I for one applaud you! Congratulations!

Misty Jensen

Tobacco Prevention and Control Program Manager

Alaska Family Services

Palmer