Vale Doug Ralph
Posted on 25 February, 2015 by Connecting Country
Connecting Country is greatly saddened by the news that Doug Ralph died of a heart attack earlier this week.
Doug was involved from the very earliest discussions about the need for a community-based landscape restoration program in the local area, which grew into the idea of Connecting Country. In his gentle, friendly and inclusive manner, he played a major role in bringing together people from across the Mount Alexander Region for this common purpose. Then, as Connecting Country’s first president, he laid the foundations for the organisation it has become. He continued to maintain a keen interest in the subsequent years after stepping back from a committee role, and always generously provided assistance and advice to the staff and committee when asked. As recently as December last year, Doug led a team of birdwatchers drawn from Connecting Country members and supporters on an excursion to one of his favourite patches of local bushland near Fryerstown (click here). His knowledge of the ecological and cultural values of Box-Ironbark forests was vast and insightful, and his passion for it was inspiring.
The Friends of the Box Ironbark Forest have a moving tribute to Doug on their website, which gives further insights to this great person (click here).
We pass on our sympathies to his family at this tough time.
We will miss him.
Doug Ralph consolidating Connecting Country’s relationship with the Norman Wettenhall Foundation (Beth Mellick – Executive Director) in the very early days of the organisation.
On behalf of Trust for Nature, I would like to pass on our sincere condolences to Ralph’s family and friends. He was one of our North Central covenantors, someone I greatly respected and always enjoyed bumping into at the Wesley Hill markets………He will be greatly missed.
I remember that day well, he has been such a good friend and colleague ever since.