KNOXVILLE — Smoke-Free Knoxville is holding a membership recruitment event on Friday, June 6 from 8:30 to 10:30 a.m. at the Knox County Health Department (KCHD), located at 140 Dameron Ave. Made up of community members and organizations, Smoke-Free Knoxville is a local coalition whose mission is to reduce death, disease, disability and financial impact related to the use of tobacco.

“We’re encouraging anyone interested in tobacco use prevention and cessation to attend to learn how we can make a difference by working together,” said Smoke-Free Knoxville Chairperson Connie Meredith. “Our group of more than 25 community members and organizations has seen great success over the years, but we still have much more work to do, especially as it relates to prevention of youth initiation and exposure.”

Shawn Ralston, M.D., section chief of Inpatient Pediatrics at the Children’s Hospital at Dartmouth, will serve as the keynote speaker and will share her research and experience in tobacco use prevention and cessation. Dr. Ralston’s presence at the event is made possible by a grant from the American Academy of Pediatrics. The event is free and open to the public. Those interested in attending should register by contacting Kathryn Burklund at KCHD at 865-215-5174 or Kathryn.burklund@knoxcounty.org.

Smoke-Free Knoxville will focus on three primary areas in 2014: eliminating smoking during pregnancy, reducing infant and child exposure to secondhand smoke, and preventing child and adolescent tobacco use. In 1994 KCHD dedicated a full-time employee to tobacco use prevention. One of this employee’s duties is to serve as the facilitator for the Smoke-Free Knoxville coalition.

Tobacco use remains the single largest preventable cause of disease and premature death in the U.S., yet about 43.8 million Americans smoke cigarettes - nearly 1 in every 5 adults. According to the Knox County Behavioral Risk Factor Survey, more than 17 percent of Knox County adults were smoking cigarettes in 2011. In addition, approximately 18 percent of Knox County Schools high school students reported they smoked cigarettes in the past 30 days, according to the 2013 Youth Risk Behavior Survey.