Mom of two who mysteriously died on flight home from Dominican Republic was happy, healthy beforehand: kin
The Indiana mom of two who suddenly died on a flight home from the Dominican Republic seemed happy and healthy on vacation — recently telling a friend she “wouldn’t let anyone have a bad day,” The Post has learned.
“Everything I’ve seen in videos, they had a great time,” Chris Volz said Tuesday of his tragic sister, Stefanie Smith, 41, and her boyfriend and another couple who went on the trip.
Volz told The Post that neither he nor other family members are aware of Smith having any pre-existing conditions before she traveled down to the Caribbean on Feb. 24.
They said they are left with a slew of questions after she suddenly became fatally ill on her American Airlines flight home last week.
The flight was diverted to Turks and Caicos when Smith suffered her fatal episode, and she was rushed to a hospital there, to no avail.
The family is planning to send its own doctor to the Caribbean to conduct an autopsy before her body will be brought back to the United States for a celebration-of-life ceremony.
There are “still a lot of unknowns,” Volz said.
He said that when he first heard the news of his sister’s death from his parents Wednesday night, he could not “believe it’s true,” as everything around him moved in “slow motion.”
He’s not the only one, he said.
“Everyone’s in shock, just waiting for news,” Volz said, noting that he will miss his sister’s constant phone calls because she “always wanted to affirm her love.”
One of Smith’s co-workers wrote on social media that she struggled to accept her friend’s sudden death.
“I can’t remember the last time I’ve felt heartache like this,” Kristina Swinney wrote Thursday.
“The news today has shattered us.
“My days at work will forever be changed,” she said, claiming the pair had just spoken “about how you wouldn’t let anyone have a bad day … you weren’t having any part of it.”
Swinney described her friend as “the energy of work” at the Memorial Hospital of South Bend, where Smith was an X-ray technician.
“Looking to my left today, seeing you gone, knowing you aren’t coming back has left me a mess, Stef,” she wrote.
“It’s empty and quiet. The only peace I have is knowing where you are now.”
Swinney has since set up an online fundraiser for Smith’s children, Coen and Macee, who Volz said are in the care of their father and other family members.
He said his sister’s main priority in life was taking care of her children, and Swinney described the teenagers as Smith’s “everything.
“She gave her very best every day for you and worked her butt off to make sure to provide for you both,” she wrote as she tried to promote the fundraiser — which has netted more than $72,000 for the family as of Tuesday evening.
“This GoFundMe won’t ease your pain, but moving forward, know that your mom would want you to accomplish your goals and always strive to be better versions of yourself.
“The love she shared with Coen and Macee cannot be measured or described in words,” the fund adds.
“Also, her endless love for her family, friends and community will leave a lasting impact on all who had the privilege of knowing her.
“Stefanie will be so deeply missed by every single person who knew her, and we pray that the memory of her kind soul will live on forever.”
