Don Ritchie, Angel of The Gap - who helped save 500 people from suicide - dies at 85
Mr Ritchie helped save 500 despairing souls - usually with little more than compassion, a warm smile and a hot cuppa.
He spent 50 years coaxing desperate people back from The Gap, the notorious cliff at Watsons Bay where hundreds have died or thought about taking their lives. "Those who knew him knew he was a very strong person and a very capable person," Mr Ritchie's daughter Sue said today. Federal MP Malcolm Turnbull, whose electorate includes The Gap, added: "A true hero, one of our greatest Australians. RIP." New South Wales Mental Health Minister Kevin Humphries recalled when Mr Ritchie was named a Local Hero in the 2011 Australian of the Year Awards. Upon accepting the award Mr Ritchie urged people to
"never be afraid to speak to those most in need," he said. "Always remember the power of the simple smile, a helping hand, a listening ear and a kind word."
A funeral will be held in Sydney on Friday.
Wentworth Courier: "Angel of the Gap" Don Ritchie dies, aged 85
Sydney Morning Herald: Death of the Angel of The Gap: the man who saved the suicidal from themselves - For almost half a century, Don Ritchie would approach people contemplating suicide at the edge of The Gap, just 50 metres from his home in Watsons Bay, his palms facing up. Mr Ritchie told his daughter Sue Ritchie Bereny he would smile and say: "Is there something I could do to help you?"