JACKSONVILLE, N.C. (WNCT) – More efforts to help prevent overdoses are happening in Onslow County.

Following an Onslow County Board of Education Meeting, board member Joseph Speranza said Narcan kits will now be put into all schools. It’s a decision one mother said was a long time coming.

Vanessa Sapp lost her son to an overdose. Since then, she’s made it her personal mission to prevent others from overdosing.

“I think it’s just important to realize that anyone’s child could be affected,” said Sapp. “Wes was an A student. He was an athlete. And his story still ends the same way as others. And we couldn’t save him. But I hope that Narcan one day will be available to save someone else’s life.”

Sapp is one of the co-authors of the First Responder Comprehensive Addiction and Recovery Act, a grant to make Narcan kits available throughout the community.

The kits provide a nasal treatment to be administered in the event of an overdose.

“In September 2019, we received notification that the grant was awarded, and the first initial payment would be around $700,000,” said Sapp. “And then there would be two $300,000 awards that you could apply for.”

But the kits were not put into the schools right away.

Sapp spoke at the March Board of Education meeting to inform them of the 2019 grant, and the board addressed the issue the following month.

“Next year, they will start having Narcan in our schools,” said Sapp.

And Sapp said the decision means the world to her, especially on the day it fell on.

“Six years ago, this morning, I woke up to a phone call that Wes wouldn’t wake up,” said Sapp.

She said she hopes having these kits accessible in schools will help save the lives of others, and Onslow County Schools Chief Communications Officer Brent Anderson agreed.

“To my knowledge, we have not had any issues with opioid overdoses on a school campus,” said Anderson. “So this is one of those things is just going to add another layer of protection that we can put in place in the event that it were to happen.”

Anderson adds principals and campus first responders will be trained on how to properly use the Narcan spray. It takes about two to three minutes for the spray to kick-in by stopping the opiates’ effects and help restore breathing.