Donald Gross Sr.

Donald Helsman 
Nov. 15, 1992 
Donald A. Helsman, 77, Of Allenwood, Rd 1, Died Sunday In The Evangelical 
Community Hospital, Lewisburg.

Thursday, November 19, 1992 &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Page: 1A/12A QUICK WORDS: SMOKEOUT 





Annual smokeout pits willpower vs. habit &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 ********* &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; PHOTO &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 TIMES LEADER/ALEJANDRO A. ALVAREZ &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 SMOKIN' -- Yvonne Hando, 19, of Dallas, and Greg Hoats, 23, of Fern Glen, &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 enjoy cigarettes Wednesday at Luzerne County Community College in Nanticoke &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 ********** If you want to quit smoking, &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 today is the day &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 By LEANORA MINAI &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Times Leader Staff Writer &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 WILKES-BARRE -- Mary Gripp, 21, starts each day with a Newport cigarette
and a cup of coffee. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Maybe today she won't light up. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 "My sister calls me `Iron Lung,'" said Gripp, a Bear Creek resident and
Luzerne County Community College (LCCC) student who's been smoking for five
years. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 All across Luzerne County and the nation, 46 million smokers will choose
between addiction and abstinence today. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Some will cut back and satisfy their craving only once an hour. Others may
quit smoking for 24 hours or two days or even for good. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 The American Cancer Society hopes 11.5 million people kick the butts today
during the 16th annual Great American Smokeout. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 "It's a drug," said Joann Schellenbach, spokesperson for the American
Cancer Society in New York City. "It's as difficult a drug to free yourself
from as heroin and cocaine. Even drug addicts say it was easier to go cold
turkey on heroin than cigarettes." &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 In Pennsylvania, 25 percent of adults 18 years and older smoke, said
Catherine Becker, director of the Health Risk Reduction program for the
Pennsylvania Department of Health in Harrisburg. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 "We definitely have a problem," Becker said. "The highest rates of tobacco
use are in the middle age groups. If we have a higher percentage of people who
are in their mid 30s to mid 50s, we'll have higher rates of smoking in
Pennsylvania compared to other states." &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Kentucky ranked highest with 30 percent, according to a 1991 study by the
University of Wisconsin for the Pennsylvania Department of Health. The median
rate among the 47 states and District of Columbia in the study is 23 percent. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Outside LCCC in Nanticoke on Thursday, a group of students took a break for
a smoke before their next class. They'll try to stop smoking today, they said,
but they're not making any promises. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 "We have to go the whole day without a cigarette?" asked Yvonne Hando, 19,
of Dallas, who's been smoking for four years. "It relaxes you. If I'm nervous
and I have a cigarette, I feel better." &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Rick Evans, 23, smokes about a half pack of what he called "Cowboy
Killers," otherwise known as Marlboro cigarettes, a day. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 "Honest to God, I do workout a lot and it does hamper that," said Evans, of
Forty Fort. "I don't think one day's going to do it." &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 The American Cancer Society says cigarette smoking is on the decline, but
young women have not caught on, said Kayanne Vanderburg, executive director of
the American Cancer Society in the Wyoming Valley. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 "Now we're down to the people who don't care if it hurts them," she said.
"They know the dangers. They know the risks, but they don't want to give it
up." &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Schellenbach, New York's American Cancer Society spokesman, said people are
beginning to realize nicotine is an addictive drug. Many people can't smoke in
their workplaces, so they're forced to find another place to smoke or quit,
she said. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Those who don't smoke have spoken out against second-hand smoke. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Wilkes-Barre General Hospital and Nesbitt Memorial Hospital in Kingston are
offering lung capacity testing and distributing quitting tips. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Gripp, who begins each day with a cigarette, has tried to quit before.
Smoking is a habit for her -- something she does when she's watching TV or
driving. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 "I'll try," said Gripp of quitting for today. "That's all I can say."

Annual Smokeout Pits Willpower Vs. Habit 
********* 
Photo 
Times Leader/alejandro A. Alvarez 
Smokin' -- Yvonne Hando, 19, Of Dallas, And Greg Hoats, 23, Of Fern Glen, 
Enjoy Cigarettes Wednesday At Luzerne County Community College In Nanticoke 
**********

Annual Smokeout Pits Willpower Vs. Habit ********* Photo Times Leader/alejandro A. Alvarez Smokin' -- Yvonne Hando, 19, Of Dallas, And Greg Hoats, 23, Of Fern Glen, Enjoy Cigarettes Wednesday At Luzerne County Community College In Nanticoke **********

Annual Smokeout Pits Willpower Vs. Habit * Photo Times Leader/alejandro A. Alvarez Smokin' -- Yvonne Hando, 19, Of Dallas, And Greg Hoats, 23, Of Fern Glen, Enjoy Cigarettes Wednesday At Luzerne County Community College In Nanticoke **