THE DANGERS OF GHB

Amid immense grief, Zoe Read's family has chosen to speak out. They
have set aside the privacy that most of us crave at moments like this
because they want to save lives.

Zoe Read, who was about to graduate from the University of Victoria
at age 22 -- about to embark on her next round of adventures -- died
on March 13 at Royal Jubilee Hospital.

She did not recover from a severe, accidental overdose of the
date-rape drug gamma hydroxybutyrate, or GHB. Someone poured the
lethal concoction into a Gatorade bottle and brought it to a house
party. Read drank from the bottle, thinking it was water. The GHB
destroyed her respiratory system and three days later she was dead.

The Read family -- father Rollie, mother Laurie, twin brother Kyle --
have decided to tell the story of what happened to Zoe because they
don't want this to happen to anyone else.

GHB is often used as a recreational drug. It's called the date-rape
drug because it's also sometimes slipped into women's drinks, putting
them to sleep and causing partial amnesia.

The drug is dangerous, even at low doses, something that many people
don't seem to realize, or are unwilling to accept.

We admire and thank the Read family for their strength and for their
willingness to share their story, so that more people -- especially
young people -- start to understand the dangers of GHB.