Tim Winterstein Family Support after Sudden Death
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Tim Winterstein, 50, much loved father and grandfather, died on Saturday night, November 16th. We are all so overwhelmingly devastated and cannot imagine our lives without him.
He was a good man, an amazing father and grandfather, and the one person in the world that could be counted on to be there if any one of his family or friends needed him. He would drop anything for a loved one in need. He was full of love and life, whether it was telling bad jokes (that were sometimes funny!), or giving a big hug. He was passionate about helping others. He was a former volunteer at Mama's Kitchen, delivering groceries to housebound AID's patients and was often buying food or necessities for homeless citizens of San Diego. He was loved well by all who knew him.
Tim suffered a cardiac arrest while on vacation with our youngest daughter, in Vancouver, Canada on November 8th. On that Friday morning around 2 am, our daughter was awakened by his call for help. Despite contacting emergency services immediately and providing CPR for over 10 minutes, all breathing and his pulse had stopped before the paramedics arrived. He was taken to St. Paul's hospital and put on an ECMO life support machine.
The incredibly stressful week consisted of multiple tests and scans to find out whether or not he had brain damage and if so, would it be too severe to recover from. By the following Friday, an MRI revealed our worst nightmare and something that none of us were even willing to consider. He had no brain activity and zero chance of recovery. They had taken him off of life support because his heart was beating on it's own but the doctors told us he would die soon.
We are now faced with the immense difficulty of planning a funeral but most critically, getting his body returned to San Diego, CA from St. Paul's Hospital in Vancouver, BC, Canada. I am his ex-wife and mother of our children and I am graciously and most humbly asking for your help on behalf of our entire family. Tim does not have life insurance and we are not financially able to return him or handle all of the costs for his service. We appreciate greatly any assistance anyone is able to provide and we are extremely grateful to those who contribute, and also so grateful for your thoughts and prayers too!
Tim's body needs to go to a funeral home in Canada from St. Paul's hospital. The cost is $4,500-$5000 for them to pick him up from the hospital, register his death, obtain a death certificate, embalm him, purchase a traveling casket, take him to the airport, and fly him home. The cost for a San Diego funeral home to pick him up at the airport, provide a viewing, funeral, cremation, and burial at sea is also $4,000- -$5,000. I can update exact costs as we get closer to being able to know what we are able to do.
Again, thank you SO much for taking the time to read this! We appreciate it more than we can express.
Love to all!
He was a good man, an amazing father and grandfather, and the one person in the world that could be counted on to be there if any one of his family or friends needed him. He would drop anything for a loved one in need. He was full of love and life, whether it was telling bad jokes (that were sometimes funny!), or giving a big hug. He was passionate about helping others. He was a former volunteer at Mama's Kitchen, delivering groceries to housebound AID's patients and was often buying food or necessities for homeless citizens of San Diego. He was loved well by all who knew him.
Tim suffered a cardiac arrest while on vacation with our youngest daughter, in Vancouver, Canada on November 8th. On that Friday morning around 2 am, our daughter was awakened by his call for help. Despite contacting emergency services immediately and providing CPR for over 10 minutes, all breathing and his pulse had stopped before the paramedics arrived. He was taken to St. Paul's hospital and put on an ECMO life support machine.
The incredibly stressful week consisted of multiple tests and scans to find out whether or not he had brain damage and if so, would it be too severe to recover from. By the following Friday, an MRI revealed our worst nightmare and something that none of us were even willing to consider. He had no brain activity and zero chance of recovery. They had taken him off of life support because his heart was beating on it's own but the doctors told us he would die soon.
We are now faced with the immense difficulty of planning a funeral but most critically, getting his body returned to San Diego, CA from St. Paul's Hospital in Vancouver, BC, Canada. I am his ex-wife and mother of our children and I am graciously and most humbly asking for your help on behalf of our entire family. Tim does not have life insurance and we are not financially able to return him or handle all of the costs for his service. We appreciate greatly any assistance anyone is able to provide and we are extremely grateful to those who contribute, and also so grateful for your thoughts and prayers too!
Tim's body needs to go to a funeral home in Canada from St. Paul's hospital. The cost is $4,500-$5000 for them to pick him up from the hospital, register his death, obtain a death certificate, embalm him, purchase a traveling casket, take him to the airport, and fly him home. The cost for a San Diego funeral home to pick him up at the airport, provide a viewing, funeral, cremation, and burial at sea is also $4,000- -$5,000. I can update exact costs as we get closer to being able to know what we are able to do.
Again, thank you SO much for taking the time to read this! We appreciate it more than we can express.
Love to all!
Fundraising team (2)
Kimberly Bennett
Organizer
San Diego, CA
Chelsea Duncan
Team member
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