Pubdate: Fri, 09 Jan 2015
Source: Daily Courier, The (CN BC)
Copyright: 2015 The Okanagan Valley Group of Newspapers
Contact: http://drugsense.org/url/5NyOACet
Website: http://www.kelownadailycourier.ca
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/531
Author: Susan McIver

COUPLE DEFENDS SUPPLIER OF CANNABIS OIL USED TO TREAT SUMMERLAND TOT

A Summerland couple is urging the mayor and council of Grand Forks to
allow a dispensary of medical cannabis to remain open in their town.

Two Grand Forks citizens had lodged complaints about the
business.

In a recent letter to the Grand Forks officials, Chris and Elaine
Nuessler told of the invaluable assistance Jim Leslie has been to
their granddaughter, Kyla Williams, through his business, The
Kootenays Medicine Tree.

"You and these citizens (two who complained) need to understand the
extreme need for this dispensary and the derivatives they sell. Jim
Leslie is very knowledgeable and has helped many people including
numerous children. Please educate yourselves and do what you can to
save this business," the Nuesslers wrote.

Leslie, who knows first-hand the benefits of medical cannabis, holds a
bachelor degree in criminal justice and retired from the position of
border services officer in 2011.

Under the federal Marijuana for Medical Purposes Regulations, which
came into effect April 1, 2014, licensed producers can sell only dried
marijuana, which means derivatives such cannabis oil are illegal.

"The law against derivatives will be going to the Supreme Court of
Canada in the next several months. We all have a right to a quality of
life," the Nuesslers wrote.

Cannabis oil has proven to be an effective treatment for Kyla, who was
diagnosed with a severe seizure disorder at six months of age.

Her condition deteriorated in spite of care provided by her
pediatrician and doctors at BC Children's Hospital.

"By her second birthday, she had rejected all forms of viable
pharmaceuticals as well as the ketogenic (high-fat) diet and was
suffering up to 200 seizures a day. This severely affected her brain
and Kyla's development stopped," the Nuesslers wrote.

The doctors told Kyla's parents, Jared and Courtney Williams, they had
exhausted their treatment options.

Today, Kyla is much more socially interactive and is steadily gaining
strength to the point where she is trying to stand by herself.

Kyla will celebrate her third birthday on Feb. 1, wearing her first
pair of real shoes.

The dramatic turnaround in Kyla's condition began last April, when
Kyla's family learned of the potential beneficial effects of cannabis
oil for children with seizure disorders in a CNN report.

"We started investigating if this oil was available in Canada and how
to get it," the Nuesslers wrote.

Kyla's pediatrician and the doctors at Children's Hospital understood
the family's desire to try cannabis oil, but they could not legally
assist in obtaining it.

"The concentrated, lab-produced cannabis oil with high CBD
(cannabidiol) and low THC (the psychoactive component of marijuana)
was what we were looking for, and that is when Jim Leslie came to our
rescue. He provided us with oil that worked almost immediately," wrote
the Nuesslers.

Kyla is now a happy little girl. She is not cured. She is disabled.
However, there is much hope for her future.  
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MAP posted-by: Jo-D