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Father Chris Riley, founder of charity Youth Off The Streets, has died aged 70.
Riley was born in Echuca, Victoria in 1954, and was ordained as a Catholic priest in 1982. He later relocated to Sydney, where he established Youth Off The Streets in 1991.
The charity began with a single food van providing meals to young people experiencing homelessness in Sydney’s King’s Cross, later expanding to provide crisis accommodation, counselling and education support services to young people aged 12 to 24 across NSW and Queensland.
Father Chris Riley, who founded charity Youth Off The Streets in 1991, has died aged 70.Credit: Steven Siewert
Riley served as the organisation’s chief executive for almost three decades before moving onto the board as founder and executive director in 2020. He stepped down from this role in 2022 due to illness, which the Herald first reported in 2021.
Riley, who joined the Salesian religious order straight from school, was inspired by the 1938 movie Boys Town, based loosely on the work of Father Edward Flanagan.
He decided at the age of 14 that he wanted to work with homeless young people. After graduating as a teacher and taking his vows, Riley worked for two years with the Boys’ Town charity in Sydney, then studied for a theology degree at the Melbourne College of Divinity.
Riley told the Herald in 2012 that the four years of full-time study did not suit him. “I found it really difficult to live in a non-working religious community, so I started to experiment,” he said.
In a statement posted to the charity’s website on Friday, Youth Off The Streets chief executive Judy Barraclough said Riley’s work to support young Australians in need had left a “powerful legacy”.
“His vision, drive and determination will continue to inspire our organisation as we strive to provide growing numbers of disadvantaged children and young people with safety, support and education for a better future,” she said.
Youth Off The Streets chair Anne Fitzgerald said Riley was “a tireless advocate for homeless and disadvantaged youth”.
“He inspired and changed thousands of young lives,” she said.
“Father Riley will be remembered for his compassion, tenacity and unwavering belief that every young person deserves the chance to reach their full potential.”
NSW Premier Chris Minns paid tribute to Riley on Friday afternoon, saying his “visionary work changed the lives of tens of thousands of young people across NSW”.
“Father Riley believed there is no child born bad, only circumstances to overcome, and he spent over three decades proving that with compassion and opportunity young lives can be transformed,” Minns said.
“On behalf of the people of NSW, I extend our heartfelt condolences to his family, the Youth Off The Streets community, and the countless young people whose futures he helped build.”
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