Sandra Welton lost her daughter to an overdose this spring

The need for an overdose prevention site will be back before council this afternoon.

Sandra Welton is scheduled to speak to officials about the status of an OPS in the city at todays council meeting.

The issue has been a hot topic since Interior Health announced earlier this year that Vernon was going to get an OPS.

The announcement touched off months of debate with many expressing concerns about where the site will be and the impact it will have on the community.

For Welton, the site is about saving lives.

Welton's daughter, Meghan, overdosed on what she thought was cocaine in the spring.

Welton said she believes her daughter would be alive today had their been an OPS in the city.

“She had a naloxone kit in her backpack, but you can't give naloxone to yourself,” said Welton, adding her daughter did drugs in secret because of the stigma associated with drug use.

She was also working hard to be free from addiction and went two years without using, only to have a fatal relapse.

Welton made an impassioned plea for an OPS earlier this year at the International Overdose Awareness Day event at the Upper Room Mission.

“My message to Vernon is get off your butts, get the safe injection site, forget the stigma it's going to bring to the town, it's going to save lives,” said Welton.

“I think society needs to be not so ignorant. They are not giving out free cocaine and heroin. They are checking to make sure it will not kill you,” she said, adding she understands her daughter made some bad choices, but becoming a drug addict is not a goal of anyone and once they are addicted, quitting is difficult.