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With tobacco use remaining the leading cause of preventable death in Americans today, "Sarasota County's Students Working Against Tobacco (SWAT) is fighting back and raising awareness of the tactics used every day by cigarette manufacturers to find new smok- ers," a county news release says. "Organized by the Campaign for Tobacco- Free Kids and sponsored by the United Health Foundation, Kick Butts Day is a national day of activism that empowers youths to fight back against Big Tobacco," the release adds. In observance of that day, four Sarasota County high schools will host presentations by Patrick "Pac Man" Perez, the release con- tinues. "A youth motivational speaker, Perez combines a mix of creativity, energy and education to help students understand the tactics used by Big Tobacco to target youths through retail advertising placement and fla- vored tobacco products," the release says. Presentations will be held on Monday, March 17, at North Port High School and Venice High School. On March 18, presentations are scheduled at Riverview High School in Sarasota and Pine View School in Osprey. "These presentations will raise the awareness of hundreds of students throughout Sarasota County regarding the dangers of tobacco use," said Hilary Woodcum, tobacco preven- tion specialist with the Florida Department of Health in Sarasota County, in the release. "Every day in Florida, 88 people will die from a tobacco-related illness," she pointed out In addition to those local events, students from Pine View School are celebrating national recognition as the 2014 Kick Butts Day Public Service Announcement (PSA) Contest winners, selected by the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids, the release contin- ues. Their PSA, titled The Science Behind a Cigarette, took first place, the release adds. "Making this video helped us learn how many harmful ingredients are in tobacco products," said the film's co-creator and Pine View ninth- grader, Jonah Mundy, who is president of the school's SWAT Club. "I feel strongly about this topic and am excited that I had the opportu- nity to share this video with a large audience." The PSA may be viewed online. KICK BUTTS DAY TO BE MARKED ON MARCH 19 IN THE COUNTY Patrick 'Pac Man' Perez/Contributed photo Sarasota News Leader March 14, 2014 Page 77