FACT Members Have Fun While Helping the Community

For students looking to get involved outside of the classroom, GHS is the place to be.  There are countless way to be involved, and Greendale’s FACT group, a division of Wisconsin’s youth tobacco prevention program, is one club students looking to make a difference can join.

FACT is a statewide program that centers around teenagers spreading the message that tobacco is harmful for the human body.  Members complete activities called FACTivisms (FACT + activism) that spread their message in creative ways and submit them to FACT staff to earn points for FACT merchandise.  

FACT started in 2001 with 300 members, and now has 3,000 members in 30 groups.  Greendale’s FACT group is led by Greendale Middle School health teacher Holly Miller.

Junior Natalie Norton is new to FACT this year and is glad to have this opportunity.

“I like the idea that I am able to be a part of a group of people who are fighting the use of tobacco and e-cigs since they cause so many health complications,” she said.  

There is a wide variety of FACTivisms that groups or individual members can choose to do, and people definitely have their favorites.

“My favorite activity is probably the cups in the fence,” sophomore Mariah Bahling-Brown said.

The Cups in the Fence FACTivism is one that even students who aren’t a part of FACT can see.  FACT members come up with a catchy slogan about the dangers of tobacco and write it in a fence using plastic cups.  Greendale’s FACT group uses the fence visible from the stands at Gavinski Stadium, and they put their project together the day before a home football game, so fans who attend the game can see it.

As for Miller, her favorite part of FACT is watching students impact the community.

“My favorite part of FACT is watching youth get involved in something meaningful to the community. It takes selfless volunteers to do public health work and advocacy and that’s what FACT members do, work that benefits others more than themselves,” she said.  

The group does several FACTivism each year, and a small group of members met last week to plan out the rest of the year.  Bahling-Brown was at the planning meeting, and is excited to work on the projects that this school year brings.

“I’m looking forward to tye dying shirts most,” she said, referring to the group’s plan to order white FACT shirts and have a tye dye party to bond.

Miller loves the enthusiasm that members have about the work they do.

“Greendale students have a LOT of options when it comes to extracurricular activities. It brings me great joy that our FACT group has always been so strong. I hope that it will lead many members in the direction of advocacy work, whether it be in the public health field, medicine, politics, etc. FACT members are building leadership skills that will serve them well as adults and in the workforce,” she said.  “It is exciting to see them start that journey within the Greendale community. I know that my own children, growing up in Greendale, will benefit from the road they pave today.”