Death of devoted Devon paramedic sparks emotional tribute

The death of a much-loved and popular Devon paramedic who devoted nearly 40 years to helping others has inspired his son to embark on a gruelling challenge in his memory. Stephen Marshall, of Torquay, bravely battled with lung disease idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis for five years

The 65-year-old passed away on July 6 at Torbay Hospital. Stephen was well-known throughout Torbay for being a dedicated paramedic and within the local community where he lived, he was known for offering help to anyone who needed it.

Stephen was born in Essex and moved from Hemel Hempstead to Devon in his early 20s. He initially lived in Brixham and after made made redundant fro a struggling engineering business in Kingswear, he applied to join the ambulance service and eventually qualified as a paramedic.

He met his wife Anne at Torbay Hospital where she worked as an auxiliary nurse within the former maternity unit. They had two children, Jake and Beth, and more recently welcomed the arrival of their first grandchild.

In 2019, Stephen was diagnosed with pulmonary fibrosis. It is not known what causes the disease. He had been on the waiting list for a lung transplant but his condition worsened before he could receive one. Even if he had been well enough to have one, the survival rate is said to be only 50 per cent.

His son Jake, recalled: “Dad had always been fit and healthy so when he was diagnosed, it was very unexpected. At the moment there is no cure for pulmonary fibrosis.

“When you are diagnosed, they normally give you a three to five-year survival rate. Although dad would get short of breath, he was fine up until about 18 months ago.

“He would need oxygen if he was moving about then within the past year he dramatically changed. He couldn’t move or stand up, or do all the things he loved to do. In the end, the disease progressed so quickly.

“Thre weeks after he died my sister got married. One of the last things my dad asked me to do was to walk my sister down the aisle for him as he knew he wouldn’t make it.”

Paying tribute to him, Jake, 27, of Paignton, continued: “Dad was kind, caring, funny and always happy to help. He was just brilliant in every way. You would struggle to find anyone to say a bad word about him.

“His job was everything to him. He never saw it as a job but instead a vocation. It was never like going to work for him.

“He just loved helping people and nothing was too much trouble. He always went that next step rather than doing the bare minimum.

“He was also always doing things for neighbours on the road where he lived. Whenever they needed help, he would be there for them.”

When Stephen’s health began to deteriorate, he fully retired as a paramedic in 2022, but was able to work part-time at Screwfix in Torquay for around two years – another job he loved.

Jake, a carpenter and site manager for a construction company in Newton Abbot, recalled: “He enjoyed it because he was always doing DIY. He hated to be sat down and was always doing something.

“He also enjoyed WW2 modelling. He would build backdrops for model tanks and Navy ships.”

In memory of his dad, Jake has set himself a gruelling running challenge to raise money for Action For Pulmonary Fibrosis which not only supported his dad but also their family.

On December 21 – the shortest day of the year – Jake will attempt to run from Berry Head in Brixham to the top of Haytor on Dartmoor, following the South West Coast Path until Shaldon where he will join Templer Way up to Dartmoor. The distance is around 40 miles and Jake predicts it will take between eight to nine hours to complete.

Jake, who only took up running about a year ago after losing weight, has never run such a long distance before but is confident he will succeed.

He said: “In April I did a fundraiser for Action For Pulmonary Fibrosis. I raised £1,400 by racing from Shaldon to Kingswear along the coast path. I wanted to do something more extreme so this latest challenge feels like my way of dealing with what has happened and doing my bit to help the charity.

“I would like to get as much awareness out as possible to raise as much money as possible so other people don’t have to go what me and my family went through.”

Jake’s mum Anne, who was married to Stephen for 38 years, has told how ‘proud’ she is of Jake for taking on the challenge and how much they all miss Stephen.

She said: “My family and I miss him dreadfully. It is such a big loss to everyone, not just physically but in terms of what he did for people.

“He was a wonderful husband and father, and I am lucky we did so many trips away. If you want to do something do it now because tomorrow is not a guarantee.”

Together they enjoyed visiting countries such as California, Singapore and Hong Kong. They even went to Florida to see Pink in concert.

Anne said: “I am thankful for all the wonderful years we had together. In tributes on Facebook, everyone said what a loving and caring man he was as well as a great paramedic.

“He also looked after me and then I looked after him. I would like to thank everyone who came into our lives and helped look after him and our family.”

To donate to the fundraiser, please click here.