Lambton EMS [Emergency Medical Services] is mourning the death of its second paramedic in North Lambton in under a month.
Manager Stephen Turner said Christopher Stolte died suddenly on Friday, January 6.
"Chris Stolte was our Chief Steward of the SEIU Union at Lambton EMS, a long serving member of our paramedic family and worked out of the Grand Bend station," said Turner. "His loss has been felt deeply by all of us and a second death in a couple weeks, has been a trying time for our service."
According to his obituary, Stolte, 57, served on many boards, including the Inaugural Paramedic Monument in Toronto.
He was also an advocate for better support systems for front line emergency workers with post traumatic stress disorder [P.T.S.D].
"Chris was a dedicated paramedic," Turner said. "He loved his career and he was a passionate advocate for all staff. That's, I think, what led him to be the Chief Steward of the Union. He was always looking out for staff and trying to make sure their best interests were represented."
Turner said Stolte's death was "unexpected, but peaceful through the night."
A memorial service will be held at Gilpin Funeral Chapel in Forest on Wednesday, January 11th, 2023 at 1 p.m.
Full details can be viewed here.
Turner said the community outreach they've received has been really comforting for staff.
"We've seen messages of support and condolences coming from our allied agencies; police, fire and other healthcare sectors, as well as from other services across the province and unions too. Chris had a large impact in a lot of these areas and I think his loss is felt by many."
Stolte's death comes just two weeks after Lambton EMS lost a paramedic at its Thedford station.
Kim Doyle, an 18 year veteran with the service, died suddenly on December 24.
"The service has a peer support team," said Turner. "So, a number of paramedics within the service who help other paramedics through challenging times and help to be able to identify resources for counselling and support. We've had a trauma and grief counsellor assigned as well and we have a psychologist that the service works with, to be able to help through critical incidents, such as this."
Turner said there's been a lot more attention to the wellbeing of paramedics and emergency workers in the past several years, and while it's been welcome, there's still a lot of work to do.
We send our prayers and heartfelt condolences to @SEIUHealthCan @LambtonEMS and Chris’ family on the loss of one of their own. Chris was a passionate Paramedic & strong labour advocate. May all find peace in a life well lived. pic.twitter.com/SgniNmYZbM
— OPSEU 231 (@local231opseu) January 7, 2023