Jacquelyn Banks: Family First
Part of CCA Employees: Why I Gave Up Lighting Up
For Jacquelyn Banks, warden at Wilkinson County Correctional Facility and a smoker for 14 years, quitting began with her daughter’s holiday wish four years ago.
“A couple of days after Christmas, my daughter, who was then eight years old, said to me that she had gotten everything she wanted for Christmas except two things,” Banks says. “One was for her dad to take the entire day off work and stay home, and the second was for ‘Mommy to quit smoking.’”
The words reverberated in Banks’ mind and motivated her to make a change.
“My mother, godmother and mentor all smoked, died young and were diagnosed with cancer. I decided my family and life meant more to me than smoking,” Banks says. “I said my prayers and asked God to remove the desire to smoke from me.”
A week later on New Year’s Day, Banks smoked her last two cigarettes.
“I threw the package and the ash tray in the trash can and have never looked back,” she says. “I feel better, sleep better and certainly eat better. I also get more hugs and kisses from my family because I smell better.”
Banks has since discovered personal liberation. “When I quit, it was a sense of letting go of a deep, dark secret and gaining a new freedom.”
Banks says that keys to quitting are drive and commitment. “You have to desire to quit. You have to evaluate what’s valuable to you. You have to have a made-up mind. I want to live a long time, and I know if I continued to smoke, that would not be the case.”
By Trish Barnard and DeAndra Mack
Sound Out
Louise Grant at FSC:
Many congratulations, Warden, for doing what it takes to be a healthier version of yourself. Thanks for sharing your story.