Several Mercer County students joined other youth from around the state to let tobacco industry executives know they're busted.

More than 300 teen-agers from around Pennsylvania gathered April 10 with Gov. Mark Schweiker in Harrisburg to launch a statewide youth anti-tobacco movement called "BUSTED!"

Shea-Lin Williams, Chardenee Johnson and Charene Jackson attended the rally because of their involvement with the Mercer County 4-H Club called S.Q.U.A.D.S., which stands for Study, Question, Understand, Action, Debrief, Success. Mercer High School students Diedre Klaiber and Eliza Rust also attended. The club's adviser, Lynda Moss-McDougall, and Whitney Werner, a prevention specialist with Mercer County Behavioral Health Commission, accompanied the girls to the rally.

Shea-Lin, a senior at Sharon High School, was chosen by officials of The Nixon Group to act as emcee of the rally. She said she was chosen after attending a leadership conference in Harrisburg last year. The Nixon Group is helping to promote and coordinate the youth-prevention effort with the state Department of Health.

The Nixon Group is an independent public relations firm and social marketing team, according to a news release from the group's owners Golin/Harris International. The Miami-based agency has consumer-marketing, tobacco-prevention and health-care account teams.

Shea-Lin kicked-off the rally, delivered a speech, introduced the governor and performers at the event.

Chardenee, a junior at Farrell High School, performed a tobacco-prevention rap with backup from Shea-Lin and Charene, a junior at Sharon.

Shea-Lin said the purpose of the rally was "elimination of manipulation" against teen-agers by the tobacco industry. During her address, Shea-Lin said, she told the crowd, "We're here to represent Pennsylvania's youth and tell big tobacco we're not going to take it any more."

"I thought it was a really big success," Shea-Lin said of the rally.

Now that the girls are home, they're trying to spread the word against teen-tobacco use in Mercer County.

Chardenee said S.Q.U.A.D.S. members are planning to host their own BUSTED! rally at the Mercer County Courthouse in the fall. The teens are also talking about having BUSTED! dances and talent shows where anti-tobacco information would be distributed, Shea-Lin said.

"It's not the end, it's just the beginning," Chardenee said.

Shea-Lin said she thinks teen-agers are more receptive to anti-tobacco messages from other teens, but when adults speak, it sometimes sounds like a lecture.

"Even though we're young, we know what we're talking about," Charene said. She said they hope to stop kids from using tobacco products before they get started.

"It's all about youth. I'm just so proud of them. They're very good role models in 4-H, school, church, the community," Ms. Moss-McDougall said of the girls. "We as adults need to remember our role is empower them."

The 4-H S.Q.U.A.D.S has about 10 members that meet twice a month, Ms. Moss-McDougall said. She said she's hoping to expand the program to get other students from around the county involved.