Cheyenne

Tulsa, OK

My dad was diagnosed with COPD years ago, but unfortunately, he was never able to overcome his addiction. In January, while I was away at school, I got a call from the hospital. They told me that my dad only had several more months to live. I immediately dropped out of the semester to go home and take care of my dad. We lost him in October. Tobacco cost him his life, but it cost me and my siblings, too.

It cost us money we didn’t have for medical bills and funeral payments. It cost me a year of school. The emotional cost is unparalleled. The biggest cost by far was the loss of my dad. He won’t be there at my graduation. He won’t be there for the daddy-daughter dance at my wedding. I’ll continue to pay for the cost of tobacco every time I think to myself, I wish you were here dad.