Our Stories

Walking through a bustling recreation center, Michelle Mouratidis carefully guides her brother, Mike, toward the makeshift vaccination area. Amid the clinical chatter, Michelle’s eyes are drawn to the paramedics administering the COVID-19 shots alongside other medical staff. A retired paramedic, Michelle’s professional curiosity is sparked by the Medavie Health Services patches on their uniforms. She watches the paramedics work to immunize residents against the virus and decides to learn more about their scope of practice. It would become the first step in Michelle’s career with Medavie.

Michelle was impressed by what she read online: that Medavie Health Services played an essential role on the frontlines of the pandemic across Canada, from managing COVID-19 vaccinations, operating provincial border screenings, and even vaccinating Canada’s Olympic athletes ahead of the Tokyo games. Inspired by the organization's community and social impact, Michelle successfully applied for a position as a seasoned Project Manager with the Project Management Office (PMO) at Medavie and hasn’t looked back.

She defines the role of a PMO as the “bridge between a project's plan and its successful execution, ensuring that it meets deadlines, stays within budget, and adheres to quality standards.”  She and her team manage projects for private and public-sector partners, such as Veterans Affairs Canada, that make accessing health benefits easier so Canadians can focus on improving their physical and mental wellbeing.

Michelle draws on an extensive 18-year background in project management for her role, with a broad range of experience in emergency and paramedic services, ambulance dispatch and communications, and public health. Additionally, her 22-year career in Information Technology with Hewlett-Packard has aided her work at Medavie, including robotic process automation initiatives.

Michelle leads a full career and a full life. Outside work, she is an active member of the Peel Regional Paramedic Services Honour Guard. Additionally, Michelle and her son Niko volunteer as Community Responders in the service's "Neighbours Helping Neighbours" program. This initiative dispatches qualified volunteers to provide local residents with life-saving interventions when seconds count before professional fire and ambulance crews arrive. 

Niko, currently a student at Humber College's Fire and Emergency Training Institute, shares his mother's commitment to community service. Together they also volunteer to assemble family and emergency food kits for Global Medic, a Canadian charity dedicated to providing people affected by poverty, disaster, or conflict with humanitarian aid locally and internationally. Michelle recently finished her Rapid Response Team certification and looks forward to deploying overseas if needed.

Michelle prioritizes her family above all else, finding deep fulfillment in spending time with her children. Whether it be packing food boxes or cheering them on from the sidelines at sports events (28-year-old daughter, Ariana, is a semi-professional soccer player and bikini bodybuilder). 

“Nothing makes me happier than watching them thrive and seeing them become well-rounded, good human beings.”

Michelle beams with pride when she shares a photo of her son Niko, at age 9, standing in front of a festively decorated ambulance at their community’s Santa Claus parade. He’s joined by friends, all wearing stocking caps and big grins, and Michelle, proudly wearing her paramedic uniform. 

 She treasures this photo for two reasons. Firstly, it captures a fond mother-son memory from the years when Niko was her “little helper”.  Secondly, it represents their journey coming full circle, symbolizing the special bond they've developed over the years as community volunteers and emergency responders. 

“He’s been exposed to helping others, community care, and emergency service from an early age, and although I hoped, I truly didn’t know he would pursue a similar path.”

Her compassion can be traced to her childhood. Michelle grew up in a low-income home, the eldest of three children to very young parents who divorced when she was 10. During particularly difficult years, Michelle and her siblings experienced holidays without the usual festivities — some Christmases passed without a tree, and the only gifts and food they received were donated by a local charity and church.  She remembers making meals for her and her siblings of ketchup and toast, when they were the only foods in their fridge.

The family's financial situation reached a critical point when Michelle’s mother could no longer pay the mortgage, and they were evicted from their home, leaving her homeless and having to give up custody of her children to Michelle’s father. At age 16, Michelle returned to live with her mother, who had made significant strides in rebuilding her life. Starting as a maid, her mother worked her way up, eventually becoming a tour and travel sales manager for one of the top hotels in downtown Toronto. 

Her mother’s career progression served as a template for Michelle’s professional and personal success. Reflecting on her approach to life and work, Michelle notes, “I’ve always been the kind of person who’s asking: ‘what’s next, what else can I do, how can I help or give more.’” For example, she earned her bilingual certification through five years of night classes (never having studied French beyond Grade 10) to support career growth while raising her own family and holding parallel careers in IT and Paramedicine, in addition to obtaining PMP (Project Management Professional) and Lean Six Sigma Green Belt accreditations.

Sadly, her mother and “role model” died at the age of 68, only a few days after Michelle received a job offer from Medavie. 

Grieving her mother's passing, Michelle found solace in the unexpected outpouring of support from her Medavie colleagues. 

“They live and breathe Medavie’s culture of caring. Culture isn’t just words on paper; it was a safe space for me.”

This fall, she and her high-school sweetheart husband Sam (of Greek heritage) will celebrate their 30^th wedding anniversary in Rome and her son’s graduation from Humber College with a diploma in Pre-Services Structural firefighting.

Another goal for Michelle is to publish a book on her childhood experiences called My Brother Mike – The Lion and the Lamb.