Don Ritchie

Who was Don Ritchie?

Donald Taylor "Don" Ritchie, OAM was an Australian who officially rescued 160 people from suicide as of 2009 over a 45-year period, although his family claims the number is closer to 400. Ritchie resided next to The Gap, a cliff in Sydney, Australia, known for multiple suicide attempts. In 2006, he was awarded the Medal of the Order of Australia for his rescues, the official citation being for "service to the community through programs to prevent suicide." Ritchie and his wife Moya were also named "Citizens of the Year" for 2010 by Woollahra Council, the local government authority responsible for The Gap. He received Local Hero Award for Australia in 2011, the National Australia Day Council saying: "His kind words and invitations into his home in times of trouble have made an enormous difference ... With such simple actions, Don has saved an extraordinary number of lives."

Ritchie explained his intervention in suicide attempts saying "you can't just sit there and watch them".

He enlisted into the Royal Australian Navy in 1939 as a Seaman during World War II aboard HMAS Hobart and witnessed the unconditional surrender of the Japanese Imperial Forces in Tokyo Bay on 2 September 1945, officially ending World War II in the Pacific. After the war he was a life insurance salesman.