volunteer

Five Minute Plan
to bring Patrick Reynolds in to speak

Who to call locally
Talking points

Make one phone call and plant the seed with a likely local sponsor. Overview of Patrick Reynolds’ live talks. Thanks for making a difference in your community!

LOCAL SPONSORS

HOSPITALS Call a hospital and ask for the Director of Marketing. If they are not available, ask for the person under them, the Director of Public / Community Relations. But at hospitals, the Marketing Director is the best person to initially suggest this idea to, or even the CEO. A local hospital is a likely funding source for Patrick Reynolds’ youth talk and his university / community program. A personal phone call to them most effective. We’ve included the talking points further down this page.While speaking to the Director of Marketing, be sure to ask them whether they would like for you to e-mail information. Typically they will say yes, since an e-mailed proposal is very easy for them to share with other key hospital staff.We’ve prepared a draft of an e-mail to a hospital for you. Copy and paste it into an e-mail immediately following your phone call.Hospital executives often sponsor Mr. Reynolds’ talks as a bridge-builder to their local community. Usually they will invite local press, and understand they will benefit from the goodwill generated. Sometimes two or three hospitals join together and tour him for several days. The tobacco control coordinator in the local health department will likely offer support. They can help the hospital select and book additional local schools, and sometimes will even enlist other hospitals to cosponsor, if the first hospital is open to that. See the talking points below.
LOCAL TOBACCOFREE COALITIONS are a second funding possibility. Your local branch office of the American Cancer Society, American Lung Association or American Heart Association can give you the phone number of your local coalition. All three usually belong to the local tobaccofree coalition, which are frequent contributors to Mr. Reynolds’ talks.
YOUR LOCAL HEALTH DEPARTMENT Call the tobacco control officer in your local public health department. Suggest that they enlist a local hospital, and assist the hospital by helping to book Mr. Reynolds into local schools. Health Departments in states with strong tobacco prevention funding set aside by the State Legislature will often cosponsor Mr. Reynolds’ talk at middle and high schools. To see whether your State has strong tobacco prevention funding, click here and click on your state.
COLLEGES Call a local college, and ask for the Student Activities Director. They often have funds available for guest lecturers, or can at least provide an auditorium. Ask for the e-mail of the student lecture chairperson, who makes the final decision about booking guest speakers. Click here for info on Mr. Reynolds’ college talk.Use our prepared draft of an e-mail from you to whoever you speak with, and rewrite it to be appropriate to the organization speak with. For best results, copy and paste our draft into an e-mail immediately following your phone call.

Photo by Mickey Krakowski

This well known tobacco prevention speaker has delivered his powerful motivational talk to thousands of children and teens. These are the critical years: after age 19, almost no one takes up the smoking habit.

Talking points

Let your enthusiasm show — it’s catching!

Say you have an excellent speaker you’d like to bring in to the community to speak in middle and high schools. Let them know he can also give a community talk at a local college or hospital.
Tell them it’s Patrick Reynolds, the well known smoke free advocate and grandson of the tobacco company founder, R.J. Reynolds. Patrick turned his back on the family’s company after losing his father to smoking, and became a nationally known champion of teen tobacco prevention.
Mention that his talk receives strong and positive local media coverage, which will build community goodwill for the sponsor, and bring the message to the wider community.
If desired, two or three hospitals may join together to tour Mr. Reynolds for several days.
Some hopsitals have added their Director of Lung Cancer or Coronary Disease as introductory speakers at his community talks. The doctors educated the community about their units at the hospital. Later they joined Mr. Reynolds on stage for a Q & A panel discussion with audience participation.
Tobacco control staff in the local county health department may offer support by booking local schools, and enlisting other hospitals to cosponsor, if desired.
Give them our phone number, (310) 577-9828, and the web page, www.tobaccofree.org/patrick.
Cost Please see our current speaking fees.
If time permits, read them a quote from our page What past clients say.
Ask if they would like you to send them information by e-mail. Typically they will say yes, as it will then be easy for them to share with other key hospital staff. Get their e-mail; we’ve prepared a draft of a follow up e-mail from you to them, and posted it at this url: www.tobaccofree.org/volunteer.
Offer them the phone number of Patrick Reynolds’ office, (310) 577-9828, and your own number, too.

Thank you!

We acknowledge your caring, and are grateful for your phone call. By educating our youth early about smoking, we can make a real difference in their lives. We’re all fighting on the same team, for the same goal. Mr. Reynolds’ closing promise and vision in all his talks is that we will have a smokefree society in the 21st century. Thank you for helping to make that dream come true. Now let’s make a memorable community event!