Breathe Free is a Lung Health Equity Project of the IE and Coachella Valley, and an initiative of the American Lung Association
The American Lung Association is focused on defeating lung cancer, creating a tobacco-free future, championing clean air for all and improving the quality of life for those with lung disease and their families. Originally, the Proud 2B Free Project, we have since evolved to the Breathe Free Project with a renewed focus that extends beyond tobacco-related health disparities. We are dedicated to promoting lung health equity with a focus on the Latino/Hispanic and LGBTQ+ communities.
While the American Lung Association is a national organization, the Breathe Free Project is focused on the Inland Empire and the Coachella Valley.
Visit Lung.org for more information about the American Lung Association’s work in California and across the nation.
The Primary Project Goals of Breathe Free Include:
Defeat lung cancer
Champion clean air for all
Improve quality of life for those
with lung disease and their families
Create a tobacco-free future
Current Initiatives:
Promote Comprehensive Smokefree Outdoors Policies
Promote Smokefree Multi-Unit Housing
Promote Tobacco Retail Policies
Engage Underrepresented Groups, such as the LGBTQ+ & Hispanic/Latino Communities
Meet The Team
Yasmine Franco | Health Promotions Specialist
Excited to help and work directly with local communities, Yasmine Franco (she/her) recently joined the American Lung Association’s Health Promotions Team in June 2023. She currently serves as the Health Promotions Specialist for the Inland Empire and Coachella Valley. Yasmine’s role includes conducting community outreach, hosting trainings, offering educational presentations, and spreading awareness on the harms of tobacco and secondhand smoke to the community. Along with coordinating, implementing, and evaluating project objectives, she actively participates in coalition work throughout the Tri-Counties which encompasses San Bernardino and Riverside counties.
Graduating with a Bachelor of Science in Health Science with a concentration in Public Health Education from California State University, San Bernardino, she’s now able to use her own education and passion for health equity to advocate for policy change that encourages communities and individuals to live healthy, happy lives. Yasmine strives to help create a socially equitable society standing against the tobacco industry with the goal of helping to save and/or improve lives through her advocacy, education, and community work. In her free time, she enjoys trying new foods, traveling, and spending time with her cat, Olive.
If you would like to reach out to Yasmine, you can contact her at Yasmine.Franco@Lung.org
April Forrest | Manager of Health Promotions
April is an MPH graduate and DrPH Candidate at Claremont Graduate University. She has a B.A. from Pitzer College in Global Public Health, Community Engagement with an emphasis on Women’s health disparities.
April has interned and volunteered in Los Angeles County, Riverside County, and several countries worldwide. As she continues to study, April hopes to continue broadening her lens on Public Health and its intersectionality. Her work in Public Health in recent years includes The American Lung Association, where she was a Health Educator before becoming the Health Promotions Manager. During her time as a Health Educator, April worked in La Mirada and Norwalk educating kids and adults on the dangers of vaping and the importance of Lung Health.
Before working at the American Lung Association, all of April’s work was in sexual health education. This includes spending time at Claremont College campuses at the health education outreach center and in Hue, Vietnam Medical School, and working as a health educator at Pasadena City College where she served as an advisor for peer mentors and student group Active Minds.
Currently, April is a Manager of Health Promotions for the American Lung Association and is an adjunct professor at Occidental College and Cal State LA, Chapman University, and the American Music and Dramatic Arts School. She has taught classes in Global Health and Community Literacy, Behavioral Health Sciences, and co-instructs theories at Claremont Graduate University. In her free time, April volunteers with a suicide text hotline.
If you would like to reach out to April, you can contact her at April.Forrest@Lung.org