Campus Champions
In the months following Widener's announcement that it was going smoke-free on all four campuses, several success stories have emerged of community members who have successfully kicked the habit.
Read about these Campus Champions below:
Name: Richard King, 40
Title: Carpenter
Hometown: Mickleton, NJ
After using chewing tobacco for 22 years, King admits he was scared into finally dropping the habit on November 3 after a high school friend of his wife's died of mouth cancer. What was so scary, he said, wasn't so much the prospect of his own death as it was the impact it would have on his family.
"I guess the biggest thing was my kids," King said. "I have an 8-year-old and a 4-year-old. I figured it was time to start getting a little bit healthier. I want to be around a little longer."
King took advantage of Widener's Connect to Wellness program and enrolled in an 8-week course of 30-minute individual counseling sessions. This last quit attempt wasn't his first, he said, but what made it different was that the desire to stop chewing was stronger than it ever had been."
"The first month was a little rough," King said. "I felt really bad. I guess it was withdrawal. But in the last couple of weeks, I feel a lot better. I have more energy. I just wish I would've done a lot sooner."
Name: Kim D'Eletto
Title: Administrative Assistant
Hometown: Norwood, PA
Kim D’Eletto didn’t need a reason to quit smoking. She knew it was affecting her breathing and that the long-term effects on her health would be worse. She knew that at a pack and a half a day, her habit was not cheap. She didn’t need a reason to quit; what she needed was support. Through Widener’s smoking cessation programs, D’Eletto finally found that support and quit smoking after 32 years on November 3.
D’Eletto walked away from the cessation program with a small souvenir: a yellow rubber band bracelet. “I was told to snap the band against my wrist each time I have an urge to smoke,” she said. “It works; the pain literally snaps me out of the craving.” Now brown, worn thin and broken, the rubber band remains in D’Eletto’s pocket or desk drawer – just in case.
D’Eletto hopes that her husband and others will follow in her footsteps. “Stick with it, it’s worth it in the long run,” she said, offering words of advice. “I’m grateful that Widener gave me the push I needed to quit. I think this tobacco-free initiative will save a life…preferably mine.”
Name: Brendan Layton, 57
Title: Business Analyst
Hometown: Boothwyn, PA
Brendan Layton had smoked a pack a day for 35 years before the day in 2007 when, after developing a serious lung condition, he decided to leave tobacco behind. It wasn’t his first quit attempt, but the last time around was different.
“I got a pneumonia, so I was properly motivated at that point,” Layton said. “It was a wake-up call. It became apparent to me that it was time to quit smoking. I wanted to quit. It was just that desire, that understanding that I didn’t want to risk my health anymore.”
Though Layton quit before the university decided to go tobacco-free, he said he felt it was “definitely a great idea.” He acknowledged that he would probably feel the panic of the impending policy implementation date, and that he’d be looking for ways to accommodate his habit.
“I think it’s going to be difficult for a lot of people,” Layton said. “I’m happy that I quit and am relieved of the burden. I feel so much better without having a pack of cigarettes a day.”
Layton said he ended up replacing cigarettes with chewing gum, which he characterized as his crutch.
“There were definitely times I wanted to pick (a cigarette) up, but it was one of those habits that if I have one, I’ll have 100,” he added. “Fortunately I never picked up the first one.”