The editor:
A few days ago I visited McBrayer Elementary School for the first time to attend a basketball game. I was shocked to see people smoking right outside the door of the main entrance in an obviously “designated smoking area” as there was a cigarette butt disposal receptacle. I don’t understand how as a city we voted to pass a law regarding not smoking in a public building or “within a reasonable distance of the outside entrance” but we can provide an area for people to smoke about 15 feet outside the front door of a school where children ages 5 through 11 walk through that area every day. This is not only setting a poor example but it is also harmful to the health of those children walking through the clouds of secondhand smoke. I believe if St. Claire Medical Center, Guardian Automotive, and possibly others can be tobacco-free on the property, then so can our school system.
Joanna Hunt
Morehead
