As a senior at Osceola High School, a football player, and a future college student, I’ve learned that success depends on strong foundations. For my generation, those foundations include health, opportunity and environments that make it easier to choose what’s right. That’s why tobacco free parks in Osceola County matter so much to me and to the youth growing up here.
Parks are where kids learn teamwork before they ever put on a jersey. They’re where families gather, friends hang out, and teens like me train, relax, and reset after long days of school and practice. These spaces should promote health, not expose young people to harmful products that have targeted our communities for decades. Right now, nearly half of youth in Osceola County (47%) are exposed to secondhand smoke, often in places meant for fun, fitness, and family time.
As a teen, I’m not just speaking from statistics, I’m speaking from real life. I’ve helped with cleanups and beautification projects at local parks throughout the county, and I’ve seen firsthand the pollution and litter left behind. I’ve picked up cigarette butts from playgrounds where kids should be able to play safely, from fields where athletes train, and from trails where families walk their pets. Wildlife must maneuver around this waste, pets can mistake it for food, and kids are left playing in spaces that should be clean and healthy but aren’t.
That experience made it clear to me that tobacco use in parks doesn’t just affect people in the moment, it leaves lasting damage behind.
Tobacco companies have a long history of focusing on youth like me through marketing, flavored products and ads that make smoking and vaping seem normal or harmless. When tobacco use is visible in parks, it sends a message to young people that it’s just part of everyday life.
That’s a message we don’t need. Tobacco-free parks help change that. They help denormalize smoking and vaping, especially for kids who are still figuring out who they are and who they want to be. When young people don’t see tobacco use in the spaces they look up to, they’re less likely to start using it themselves. That’s prevention that actually works.
As an athlete, my lungs are my engine. As a future college student preparing for the next chapter of my life, I think about long-term impact. Secondhand smoke doesn’t belong in places designed for movement, growth and community. Tobacco free parks protect everyone, from toddlers on the playground to teens on the field to seniors walking the trail. They also protect our environment. Cigarette butts are the most littered item in the world, and they don’t belong in our parks, playgrounds or waterways.
Leaders in Osceola County have an opportunity to work together and lead by example. By expanding and supporting tobacco-free parks, you’re showing young people that our health matters more than industry profits and that our future is worth protecting. This decision isn’t about punishment. It’s about protection. It’s about creating safe spaces where kids can focus on becoming athletes, artists, college students, teachers and leaders, without being influenced by an industry that sees youth as customers instead of people.
My call to action is simple: continue to stand with Osceola County’s youth. Support and strengthen tobacco-free park policies and keep listening to young voices, especially those from communities most impacted by tobacco marketing. When you invest in prevention today, you build a stronger, healthier tomorrow. To our elected officials and decision-makers: thank you for the work you already do to serve our communities. Your leadership doesn’t just shape policies, it shapes the environments we grow up in. When our parks are tobacco-free, you’re not just protecting public spaces, you’re protecting the next generation and the future of Osceola County.
Jaden Copeland is a senior at Osceola High School and a Students Working Against Tobacco youth leader.