Tributes paid to Orange stalwart Ruth O’Malley
WATCH: Re-live the moment Ruth O’Malley won $10,000 and hear from son John about what his mum meant to him.
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00:00 Oh my goodness.
00:01 Come on out.
00:02 Ruth, come on out.
00:03 Come on outside.
00:04 I'm Natalia Cooper from the Today Show.
00:07 This right here is your beautiful daughter Margaret.
00:11 All of your family is here.
00:13 What's going through your head?
00:15 I'm just stunned.
00:16 Now you do a lot of work for charity.
00:20 You help out with St Vincent de Paul and the church.
00:23 You're 85 years young.
00:24 Why do you do what you do?
00:26 Because it keeps me young.
00:27 Oh, you're a beautiful woman.
00:30 Now do you have any idea what we're all doing here?
00:33 No.
00:34 Not whatsoever.
00:35 They told you it was a Mother's Day surprise, but this is going to be a big surprise.
00:41 Your daughter Margaret, your beautiful daughter, has nominated you for a knock of cash.
00:46 And right here we have $10,000 just for you.
00:52 I can't believe it.
00:55 Oh my goodness.
00:57 Oh darling.
00:58 Thank you.
00:59 What's going through your head?
01:00 Oh, what a pleasure.
01:01 The head's not capable of coping anymore.
01:02 And what are you going to spend the money on?
01:03 It's an overload.
01:04 I haven't the slightest idea.
01:05 Are you going to buy something nice for yourself?
01:06 No.
01:07 What a waste.
01:08 How would you sum up your mum, Ruth O'Malley?
01:10 Pretty hard to sum up in a sentence.
01:15 But mum was someone who had a life of giving.
01:28 She gave to her family, raised her own kids, lost her husband at 58.
01:36 And then when a lot of people might retreat, she went the opposite way and took up where
01:40 he left off.
01:41 She became involved in Meals on Wheels and St Vincent de Paul, church cleaning, choirs,
01:48 any sort of community group or cause that needed a hand, mum was there for.
01:54 That kept her very active in her later years.
01:58 It didn't stop her from being always there for her family, but kept her mentally sharp
02:04 and giving.
02:05 And I guess that's the real thing that comes through about mum.
02:09 She was a very generous person to anyone she met.
02:12 [BLANK_AUDIO]