Royal Jordan wanted to be cool.
So, at age 14, he picked up his first cigarette and took a puff. He continued for years, hooked on the tobacco he once was sure would transport him to the center of desirable social circles.
Where it did take him was a very different place, one where he struggles to breathe and often feels as if someone is sitting on his chest.
Jordan, 58, who runs the Urban Youth Empowerment Program for the Fort Wayne Urban League, quit smoking in 2004 – but only after his doctor first diagnosed him with pneumonia.
“Then he said, 'You've got a spot on your lung,' ” Jordan said last week at a forum that included doctors, researchers and public health experts.
“Then he said, 'You have one-third lung function.' Then he said, 'You don't have smoker's cough, that's emphysema.'”
The State of Our Health forum was one of 17 stops on a statewide road show that began in April and ends in October. More than a dozen speakers pushed for more state funding for preventive measures and education initiatives for a variety of concerns including drug abuse, infant mortality and tobacco use.
One of the state's top lawmakers, Senate Pro Tem David Long, R-Fort Wayne, said in an interview last week that millions of dollars are spent each year on public health programs. Still, Long acknowledged, more is needed.
Jordan's story is one members of the Alliance for a Healthier Indiana say shouldn't be repeated. The state doesn't spend enough on public health, they say, and the group of doctors, researchers, advocates and business and political leaders has launched a campaign to raise awareness about public health problems and boost funding for programs that could have helped people like Jordan.