Note: This story is being republished, having originally made headlines in August 2016.
A 16-year-old girl was discovered deceased from a suspected overdose in a Starbucks restroom.
Gwynevere Staddon was found unresponsive by an employee in the bathroom of a Starbucks located in Port Moody, as reported by Global News.
Port Moody police stated that emergency responders were unable to revive the teenager. She was found in possession of a small quantity of drugs and related paraphernalia.
Her mother, Veronica, expressed her strong belief that Gwynevere succumbed to a fentanyl overdose, according to CBC. The official cause of death has not yet been established.
“My best friend, my daughter, my precious baby … I will always miss you,” Veronica shared on Facebook. “My heart is shattered.”
Veronica revealed that Gwynevere had been battling substance abuse for an extended period. Before her passing, she assured her mother that she had been clean for three weeks.
“I’ve quit, so I’m fine now, Mom,” Veronica recalled Gwynevere saying. “It was calling her name, and she thought, ‘Just one more time.’ That one more time turned out to be the last.”
Veronica mentioned that she had considered enrolling Gwynevere in a rehabilitation program, but the lengthy waitlists for public facilities and the high costs of private clinics made it unfeasible.
“If I don’t have $50,000 on hand, then those options are not available to me,” she told CBC.
“The world is missing out on a natural performer,” Veronica added. “Alternatively, she could have been a future politician.”
Veronica advocates for more action to remove drug dealers from the streets and to enhance rehabilitation services for those in need.
