Madelia posse gets in the paper!

Madelia Times Messenger Wednesday, June 18, 2008

Madelia High School KATS Take Cause to Capitol

Pictured L-R: Katie Odegard, Beatriz Castro, Sam Bestick (lying down), Sam Crowley, Emilio Campo, Amanda Tadych, Jared Bridges, Diana Aquino, Sara Aguilar and Trina Whitney.

By Michelle Van Hee
T-M staff writer

    It may be summer, but the Madelia Kids Against Tobacco and Smoking, also known as KATS, know that kids falling prey to the dangers of smoking and tobacco use does not take a vacation.  That is why ten members of the group including Sam Bestick, Katie Odegard, Beatriz Castro, Emilio Campo, Jared Bridges, Diana Aquino, Sara Aguilar, Sam Crowley, Amanda Tadych and Trina Whitney, volunteered to travel to St. Paul, along with KATS coordinator Dawn Bestick, to take part in a three-day youth leadership summit organized by Catalyst.  The trip was paid for by Catalyst and included food, housing, training and travel costs. 
    Catalyst is a group that is all about action.  They have decided to fight back against Big Tobacco – exposing its lies and manipulation through creative youth activism. Catalyst is a statewide network for youth advocates across Minnesota.  The movement is committed to taking action against the tobacco industry by creating change - changing policies, changing minds and eliminating Big Tobacco’s influence in this state.  According to their website, www.bethecatalyst.org, they chose to target the tobacco industry because it is an industry that talks about young people as “replacement customers,” more specifically, to replace the people who die everyday from using their products. Catalyst explains to teens that Big Tobacco has been marketing a deadly product and has been lying to the public for decades.  

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