Local teens among KNOW VAPE video contest winners

BOISE — Idaho Public Television announced the winners of the 2023 KNOW VAPE video contest on Friday. According to a news release from Idaho Public Television, there were twenty-eight videos entered in this year’s contest.

Students were asked to produce a 90-second video that speaks to the dangers of vaping, prevention or how to quit vaping.

“We had a very difficult time choosing which teens would win the top prizes because there were so many great videos,” said Kari Wardle, Idaho Public Television education manager and a KNOW VAPE contest judge. “The videos were moving, sometimes funny and very creative. Idaho teens really rose to the challenge.”

“Videos produced by teens from across Idaho were awarded a total of $10,000 in cash prizes,” said the news release.

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The two grand-prize winners were both from Boise — 16-year-old Halle Lowman and 14-year-old Eli Richey. They received $2,000 each.

“Lowman’s video included an original musical composition paired with a portrayal of a teenage girl experiencing the negative spiraling effects of vaping,” said the release. “Richey’s video featured a rap, which Richey wrote and performed, to warn about the dangerous contents of vapes plus solutions for how to quit vaping.”

Seven first-place winners received $500; four second place winners received $250; and 10 third place winners received $150.

You may watch all the winning videos here. The videos will also be broadcast on IdahoPTV and shared across social media channels.

Grand Prize winners

Eli Richey – Fairmont Junior High School, Boise

Halle Lowman – Boise Senior High School, Boise

First Place winners

Charlie Johnson – Boise Senior High School, Boise

Raymond Gauthier – Eagle High School, Eagle

Logan Furness – Hillcrest High School, Ammon

Addison Willis and Petra Christensen – Compass Academy, Idaho Falls

Eden Erickson and Brynn Harker – Thunder Ridge High School, Ammon

Hazel Ludwig and Georgia Geagan – Wood River High School, Hailey

Troy Edwards – Kuna Middle School, Kuna

Second Place winners

Saryn Alred – Rocky Mountain Middle School, Idaho Falls

Henry Watson, Gage Butcher, Dylan Hume – Eagle Middle School, Eagle

John Lundblade, Sam Hendrick – Hillcrest High School, Ammon

Chase Phillip – Bonneville High School, Idaho Falls

Third Place Winners

Lauren Pollar – Boise Senior High, Boise

Mia Fry – Vallivue High School, Caldwell

Sophie Wcaser, Kelton Erickson, Timely Ricks – Community Youth in Action, Idaho Falls

Dominique Aycock – Skyview High School, Nampa

Joshua Gray, Maxwell Thrall, Anderson LaVoie – Eagle Middle School, Eagle

Logan Furniss – Hillcrest High School, Ammon

Tiernan Nuttbrock – Idaho Online, Tech Trep Academy, Salmon

Kevin Carrillo – Skyline High School, Idaho Falls

Mae/aiia Hirschi, Arabelle Kelsch – Boise Online School

Alessa O’Laughlin – Fernwaters Public Charter, Salmon

The contest was part of KNOW VAPE, a statewide campaign designed to raise the alarm about the dangers of youth vaping in Idaho. The campaign includes a documentary called Nic Sick, featuring Idaho teens and their struggles with vape addiction; the teen video contest and social media campaign; free resources for parents; and a standards-based, multi-grade-level curriculum for educators.

RELATED | ‘Nic Sick’ Documentary raises alarm about dangers of youth vaping

Idaho Public Television partnered with Idaho’s seven public health districts on the project with funding, according to the news release. Funding cam from the Idaho Millennium Fund, an endowment created from the master settlement agreement reached with tobacco companies and states in 1998.