Karen Ogloff will have a decision to make.
The Lumby woman, a 20-year-sufferer of lupus, makes a trip into Vernon regularly for product at Herb香蕉视频直播檚 Healing Center, in the Alpine Centre on Kal Lake Road, product Ogloff says helps her with her disease.
Tuesday afternoon, at a rally held by Herb香蕉视频直播檚 owner Russ Stevenson, Ogloff heard the owner say he was closing his doors at 6 p.m. 香蕉视频直播� facing, Stevenson said, a $5 million fine and three years in jail if he didn香蕉视频直播檛 香蕉视频直播� leaving her in a lurch as to where she香蕉视频直播檒l get her product.
香蕉视频直播淚 was diagnosed with lupus in 1992 and, so far, Herb香蕉视频直播檚 products are the only thing that have helped me,香蕉视频直播� said Ogloff, 47, who has been using Stevenson香蕉视频直播檚 products for 香蕉视频直播渁bout a year.香蕉视频直播�
香蕉视频直播淚 have no idea what I香蕉视频直播檓 going to do (now). The prices here are good, the products are good, they香蕉视频直播檙e excellent. I香蕉视频直播檓 worried if he closes I won香蕉视频直播檛 be able to get a product that helps a lot.香蕉视频直播�
Stevenson held a rally at his shop Tuesday, attended by about 30 customers and supporters, protesting the City of Vernon insisting he close his business because he doesn香蕉视频直播檛 have the proper licensing.
Support for Stevenson came from Ogloff and the likes of Julia Berschley, and her grandson, Bryce Kennedy. Berschley香蕉视频直播檚 son, Collin, Bryce香蕉视频直播檚 father, died Christmas Eve 2018 after a 20-plus-year battle with multiple myeloma.
香蕉视频直播淢y son suffered for more than 20 years, and if it wasn香蕉视频直播檛 for Russ supplying cannabis, and edibles, and smoking products, my son may not have lived as long as he did,香蕉视频直播� said Berschley. 香蕉视频直播淲hen I couldn香蕉视频直播檛 afford to buy him his products, Russ gave him a whole bag of edibles for free. He didn香蕉视频直播檛 charge me.香蕉视频直播�
香蕉视频直播淗e got a lot of quality of life out of your product,香蕉视频直播� said Bryce to Stevenson, who said he香蕉视频直播檚 been selling cannabis in Vernon for more than six years. He is one of the original founders of the Herbal Health Centre, right behind his current shop in the Alpine Centre. He did that for four years with the proper city business licences, then opened his own store two years ago. Since then, Stevenson said he香蕉视频直播檚 spent this time 香蕉视频直播渓ooking after our patients.香蕉视频直播�
The City of Vernon, he said, came to his shop in January 2018 and asked that he put a covenant on the property and apply for a special temporary use permit to allow him to operate straight through until recreational marijuana was legalized in October 2018 and until provincial operating licences were approved. One of the stipulations, he said, was that he was given a 香蕉视频直播渃ertain period of time for the licence to be on the wall.香蕉视频直播�
香蕉视频直播淲e can香蕉视频直播檛 control the speed the government works, so there香蕉视频直播檚 no way we can say product will be on the wall in three months or a year, so a restriction on time frame makes no sense,香蕉视频直播� he said, calling the application process 香蕉视频直播渁bsolutely cumbersome and ridiculous.香蕉视频直播�
He has continued to operate without a proper licence, giving away, he claimed, more than $30,000 worth of product to his customers. He had nine employees prior to the regulations but has been operating the store himself for the past few months, and Stevenson said his client base number is 2,800.
香蕉视频直播淭he people being hurt by all of these delays are the medical patients,香蕉视频直播� said Stevenson. 香蕉视频直播淧atients can only buy off a licensed producer for the government and those producers are not compassionate. The other problem I see is medical patients are ordering online, paying for shipping and waiting for a product to show up while recreational users can walk into a store and buy their product. How is that OK? Why are we punishing the most vulnerable people in our society?香蕉视频直播�
Stevenson blasted the government香蕉视频直播檚 products, saying the products he sells 香蕉视频直播渇ar out-exceed what the government sells,香蕉视频直播� and also City of Vernon Mayor Victor Cumming for a lack of response to four phones calls from Stevenson, and to calls from 香蕉视频直播�500 of his customers.香蕉视频直播�
香蕉视频直播淲e definitely did not get 500 calls, we got quite a few and each had an e-mail message returned to them,香蕉视频直播� said Cumming, who feels sorry for Stevenson香蕉视频直播檚 plight.
香蕉视频直播淚 feel for him, I really do. He香蕉视频直播檚 offering what he thinks is a great product but the federal government will not legalize those products.
香蕉视频直播淢r. Stevenson was made quite aware, and he knows, he香蕉视频直播檚 been operating without a licence. He was told he had to quit selling medical marijuana as only the federal government can do that and people have to order online. He was then made aware that the province would be responsible for licensing recreational marijuana and go through the application process (which Stevenson said he had). He has not been granted a licence by the province so the city can香蕉视频直播檛 give him a business licence.
香蕉视频直播淚 don香蕉视频直播檛 know what else we can do.香蕉视频直播�
If he does close for good at 6 p.m. Tuesday, Stevenson, who said he didn香蕉视频直播檛 want to apply for a recreational licence, called it 香蕉视频直播渁 sad day in history,香蕉视频直播� and got further support from advocate Cynthia Breden of Vernon.
香蕉视频直播淚 thank Russ for his integrity, putting his own health and safety and own freedoms and monies at risk,香蕉视频直播� she said. 香蕉视频直播淲e stand with you, we stand for you. It香蕉视频直播檚 so easy to lose our lives to the Internet and order online, but do people realize we香蕉视频直播檙e giving away little bits of freedom here and there, and Russ is reminding us that we need to stand up to our right to choose.香蕉视频直播�
roger@vernonmorningstar.com
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