Penticton and Area Overdose Prevention Society (P+OPS)

What Penticton and Area Overdose Prevention Society (P+OPS) does

Penticton and Area Overdose Prevention Society (P+OPS) is a community-led, registered non-profit society founded in February 2021 in Penticton, British Columbia, Canada, operating on the unceded traditional Syilx Territories. The organization was established by Desiree Surowski as a community response to the ongoing toxic drug crisis and War on Drugs in the South Okanagan-Similkameen region. It is led by a team of approximately 5 employees and is built on harm reduction principles and evidence-based practices serving people who use substances, from daily active users to those in recovery.

P+OPS delivers free direct services rather than commercial products, including overdose prevention education, naloxone kit distribution and training, shelter support advocacy, and municipal and provincial policy advocacy. Its go-to-market is community-led, relying on grassroots organizing, social media presence (Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, YouTube), a WordPress-hosted blog, earned media across multiple local outlets (Castanet, Global News, Penticton Now, Penticton Western News, Penticton Herald), and word-of-mouth. Notable operational milestones include organizing a March 5, 2021 protest at Gyro Park with approximately 100 attendees against the closure of Victory Shelter, and participating in a multi-stakeholder coalition with United Way, PDCLS, Ooknakane Friendship Centre, and Church of the Nazarene to operate an emergency winter shelter during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The organization is funded through community donations and grants, with provincial funding referenced in the context of shelter operations (BC Housing Minister David Eby publicly supported continued shelter funding). It has no disclosed revenue figures, funding rounds, or commercial pricing model. Technology plays no core role in service delivery; operations are human-led and community-driven. The primary beneficiary segments are people who use substances, people experiencing homelessness, and general community members seeking overdose response skills.

Name

Penticton and Area Overdose Prevention Society (P+OPS)

Legal name

Penticton+ Overdose Prevention Society

Website

https://pentictonoverdoseprevention.wordpress.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2021

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

P+OPS is a Penticton, BC-based non-profit harm reduction society founded in 2021 by Desiree Surowski, providing free overdose prevention education, naloxone training and distribution, and advocacy for people who use substances and people experiencing homelessness in the South Okanagan-Similkameen region.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Harm Reduction Services

NAICS

Individual and Family Services (6241)

SIC

Services-Social Services (8300)

akta.pro primary industry

Substance Use Recovery & Harm Reduction Support Services (BPAGAEAO)

akta.pro secondary industries

Substance Use, Addiction & Harm Reduction Health Departments (HLAJAAAM), Substance Use Disorder Prevention & Recovery Services (BPAGACAE)

Keywords

• Harm reduction services
• Overdose prevention education
• Naloxone kit distribution
• Community advocacy services
• Shelter support programs

Headquarters

HQ city

Penticton

HQ country

Canada

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Non-profit funding and grants: As a registered non-profit society, P+OPS operates through community funding, grants, and donations. The organization was created as a community response to the ongoing War on Drugs and Toxic Drug Crisis, with provincial funding mentioned in the context of supporting shelter operations.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

P+OPS provides community-based harm reduction services including overdose prevention education, naloxone training and kit distribution, and advocacy for people who use substances in the South Okanagan-Similkameen region. The organization also organizes community action around housing and shelter access, supporting people experiencing homelessness and mobilizing grassroots advocacy at municipal and provincial levels.

Product overview

Penticton+ Overdose Prevention Society (P+OPS) is a community-based harm reduction organization founded in 2021. Rather than offering commercial products, P+OPS provides harm reduction services including overdose prevention education, naloxone training and distribution, and advocacy for people who use substances. The organization focuses on meeting people where they are at through a continuum of care, serving individuals daily through to those who are abstinent. Key activities include community advocacy, shelter support initiatives, and educational outreach to prevent unnecessary overdose deaths in the South Okanagan-Similkameen region.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Overdose Prevention Education Educational programs and community training on overdose response, including naloxone use, aimed at people who use substances, their friends and family, and the broader community in the South Okanagan-Similkameen region.
• Naloxone Kit Distribution and Training Distribution of naloxone kits along with training to community members to enable rapid response to opioid overdoses, targeting people who use substances and the general community.
• Shelter Support and Housing Advocacy Community organizing and advocacy work aimed at keeping emergency winter shelters (such as Victory Shelter) open and supporting people experiencing homelessness in Penticton, including coordinating with partner organizations.
• Harm Reduction Outreach Direct outreach services to people who use substances, applying harm reduction principles and evidence-based practices to serve individuals across a continuum of care, from daily use to abstinence.

Quantifiable outcome

• Naloxone kit distribution and training provided to community members to enable overdose response
• +1 more outcomes

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Five partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• BC HousingcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2021BC Housing Minister David Eby asked Penticton Council to allow the Victory Shelter to remain open, highlighting the ongoing need for shelter services. Provincial funding was offered to continue shelter operations.
• United WaycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaborated with P+OPS and other organizations to supply emergency winter shelter in January and February, working together to address housing instability during the COVID-19 pandemic.
• PDCLScoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnered with P+OPS and other organizations to supply emergency winter shelter during the COVID-19 pandemic when additional facilities were needed for proper distancing.
• Ooknakane Friendship CentrecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaborated with P+OPS, United Way, and PDCLS to supply emergency winter shelter for people experiencing homelessness during the pandemic.
• Church of the NazarenecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnered with United Way, PDCLS, and Ooknakane Friendship Centre to supply an emergency winter shelter in collaboration with P+OPS during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights3 records

Emerging players

• Drug Users Advocacy League (DUAL): DUAL is a smaller, lived-experience-led drug user advocacy group active in BC communities. It is an emerging peer to P+OPS because it pursues similar grassroots advocacy, peer-led harm reduction, and policy critique of municipal responses to the overdose crisis, often in coalition with organizations like P+OPS.

Direct peers

• ASK Wellness Society: ASK Wellness Society is a BC interior nonprofit delivering harm reduction, housing, and health services across communities including Kamloops and the Thompson Region. It is the closest geographic and operational peer to P+OPS because it serves smaller BC cities hit by the same toxic drug crisis with shelter, overdose prevention, and advocacy.
• PHS Community Services Society: PHS Community Services Society operates Insite, North America's first supervised injection site, along with housing and harm reduction services across Vancouver. It is the most direct peer to P+OPS because it combines overdose prevention, harm reduction programming, and shelter/housing advocacy in a similar grassroots, community-embedded service model.
• Lookout Housing and Health Society: Lookout Housing and Health Society is a BC-based nonprofit providing emergency shelter, housing, and harm reduction supports across the Lower Mainland. It is directly comparable to P+OPS because it serves overlapping populations (people who use substances, people experiencing homelessness) with a similar mix of shelter operations, advocacy, and harm reduction services.
• Vancouver Area Network of Drug Users (VANDU): VANDU is a peer-led drug user advocacy organization in Vancouver's Downtown Eastside. It is directly comparable to P+OPS because both are grassroots, lived-experience-led nonprofits focused on drug user rights, harm reduction, and policy advocacy at the municipal level.
• AIDS Vancouver Island: AIDS Vancouver Island (AVI) provides harm reduction, naloxone training, and outreach services across Vancouver Island and other BC communities. It is comparable to P+OPS because its frontline harm reduction programming, peer-based outreach, and overdose response training target the same populations and use similar community-organization delivery models.
• RainCity Housing and Health Society: RainCity Housing operates harm-reduction-informed shelters, supportive housing, and outreach programs in Vancouver. It mirrors P+OPS's combination of shelter advocacy, overdose response, and wraparound supports for people who use substances and those experiencing homelessness.

Broad incumbents

• Interior Health Authority: Interior Health Authority is the regional health authority serving the South Okanagan-Similkameen, including Penticton. It is a comparable institution because it funds and operates harm reduction, mental health, and substance use services in the same geography where P+OPS delivers community-based programming.
• Canadian Mental Health Association - BC Division: CMHA BC is a provincial affiliate of a national mental health nonprofit offering broader programs that intersect with substance use and homelessness. It is comparable to P+OPS as a larger incumbent that competes for similar provincial harm-reduction and mental-health funding while operating in overlapping client populations.

Others

• Canadian AIDS Society: Canadian AIDS Society is a national umbrella body working on harm reduction, drug policy, and the health of people who use drugs. It is adjacent to P+OPS because both operate in the harm-reduction ecosystem and engage in policy advocacy tied to overdose deaths, though it functions as a national network rather than a direct service provider.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat2 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights5 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/pentictonoverdoseprevention
• Instagraminstagram.com/penticton_overdose_prevention
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/penticton-and-area-overdose-prevention-society

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about Penticton and Area Overdose Prevention Society (P+OPS)