For the Tomahawk Leader
LINCOLN COUNTY – Lincoln County Deputy Coroner Valerie Caylor recently announced that she will run for the elected office of Lincoln County Coroner in the Nov. 8, 2022 election.
She will be unopposed on the ballot.
Caylor is currently a Deputy Coroner for Lincoln County, selected for that position by current Coroner Paul Proulx, who will be retiring and endorses Caylor.
Proulx speaks highly of Caylor’s work as Deputy Coroner and said he has full confidence in her abilities.
“Prior to and while she was one of my Deputies, Valerie was a member of the Marathon County Medical Examiner’s Office,” Proulx said. “She has been involved in hundreds of death investigations between our two offices, and she clearly has the understanding and ability to serve as Coroner. In the past few years, I have appreciated her knowledge and the gentle approach she has taken with families. This job is a difficult one to balance between the need to analyze complicated data and the needs of a family during the worst time of their lives. I feel strongly that Valerie has that ability, and I unequivocally support her candidacy for Coroner in 2022.”
Caylor completed paramedic training at Mid-State Technical College and started her career at Lincoln County EMS – Tomahawk Division. There, she responded to thousands of 911 calls and also assisted in the emergency room and on the acute care floor, and in doing so, has been involved in the care of thousands more patients.
Caylor is currently employed as a Critical Care Flight Paramedic and is a trained Medical Death Investigator, having worked for both the Marathon County Medical Examiner’s Office and the Lincoln County Coroner’s Office.
During her combined five years with the latter two agencies, she has been involved in hundreds of cases, ranging from hospice deaths to homicides.
Caylor said she has a strong professional working relationship with the law enforcement community and her expertise has been relied upon in complex cases.
Besides investigating the cause and manner of deaths, Caylor said she feels very strongly about working with families to keep them informed and to educate them.
“I recall a case where the cause of a young man’s death was quite apparent,” she stated. “However, thanks to the work of the pathologist and my ability to work with the family, we discovered a genetic trait that could put surviving generations at risk. This family is now better informed and taking proper steps to monitor for this condition, most likely saving lives.”
In addition to her paramedic education, Caylor has attended courses related to death investigations and graduated from Medicolegal Death Investigators Training, an in-person program held at Saint Louis University in St. Louis, Mo.
Caylor continues to seek additional education to complete her training as an American Board Certified Medicolegal Death Investigator, an achievement no Lincoln County Coroner has ever obtained.
“The Office of the Coroner has changed dramatically over the last few years and now faces increasing demands from the Wisconsin Department of Health, the CDC, insurance companies and families,” Caylor said. “With 98% of the local deaths being caused by medical conditions rather than criminal actions, I feel strongly that this office needs to have a person who understands the human body, can interpret medical records, and most importantly, can relate to the family how this person died. It is my belief that I can take my education and the training I have received from incumbent Coroner Proulx and lead this office into the future. I look forward to your support in the upcoming elections.”
The Coroner’s race is considered a partisan office, and Caylor is seeking the office as a member of the Lincoln County Republican Party. If elected, she will be the first woman ever to hold this post in Lincoln County.