{"id":588085,"date":"2026-09-02T15:56:13","date_gmt":"2026-09-02T15:56:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/588085\/"},"modified":"2026-09-02T15:56:13","modified_gmt":"2026-09-02T15:56:13","slug":"bondi-rescue-lifeguard-matt-dee-dies-one-of-a-kind","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/588085\/","title":{"rendered":"Bondi Rescue lifeguard Matt Dee dies: &#8216;One of a kind&#8217;"},"content":{"rendered":"<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">Former <a data-ylk=\"slk:Bondi Rescue;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas;cpos:1;pos:1;_E:mb_qualified_link;ct:story;outcm:mb_qualified_link;\" data-yga=\"{&quot;yLinkElement&quot;:&quot;link&quot;,&quot;yLinkElementType&quot;:&quot;article_link&quot;}\" href=\"https:\/\/au.lifestyle.yahoo.com\/bondi-rescue-star-incredible-act-022814461.html\" class=\"link\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Bondi Rescue<\/a> star Matt Dee has died, his clothing company, FTW Revolution, announced on Wednesday.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">Matt worked as a Bondi Lifeguard for a decade and appeared on the popular Channel 10 reality show between 2007 and 2015.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">&#8220;It is with the heaviest of hearts that we share the heartbreaking news of the passing of our Matt Dee,&#8221; the FTW Instagram announcement read.<\/p>\n<p><img alt=\"Bondi lifeguards including Matt Dee (left).\" loading=\"lazy\" width=\"960\" height=\"640\" decoding=\"async\" data-nimg=\"1\" class=\"rounded-lg\" style=\"color:transparent\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/https:\/\/d29szjachogqwa.cloudfront.net\/images\/user-uploaded\/matt-dee-inline_6268.png\"\/><\/p>\n<p>Former Bondi Lifeguard Matt Dee (left) has passed away, his clothing company announced on Wednesday.<\/p>\n<p> (Channel 10)<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">&#8220;Matt touched the lives of many, he also did amazing work and he will be deeply missed and forever remembered by those who knew and loved him.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">Funeral details will be shared once his loved ones have finalised them.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">RELATED:<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">Friends and family were devastated to learn of the news, with one describing Matt as &#8220;one of a kind&#8221;.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">Bondi Rescue star Trent &#8216;Maxi&#8217; Maxwell said, &#8220;rest easy brother&#8221; on FTW&#8217;s post.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">&#8220;Hope you&#8217;re at peace with your family,&#8221; said another.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">&#8220;A legend within humanity. Matt, my dear second son, at peace with JD and Rach, sucking oranges with gran,&#8221; wrote a third.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">Matt started FTW Revolution in 2014, after his own life had been profoundly impacted by mental health. He tragically lost two siblings in the same year.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">FTW helps raise money for <a data-ylk=\"slk:suicide prevention;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas;cpos:5;pos:1;_E:mb_qualified_link;ct:story;outcm:mb_qualified_link;\" data-yga=\"{&quot;yLinkElement&quot;:&quot;link&quot;,&quot;yLinkElementType&quot;:&quot;article_link&quot;}\" href=\"https:\/\/au.lifestyle.yahoo.com\/facebook-suicide-prevention-tools-now-available-to-all-users-31847348.html\" class=\"link\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">suicide prevention<\/a>, and worked closely with Suicide Prevention Australia.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">A spokesperson for the peak body told Yahoo Lifestyle Matt&#8217;s passing was tragic.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">&#8220;Matt reached many through his advocacy, making a positive impact in suicide prevention, a cause he cared for and championed,&#8221; they said.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">&#8220;This is upsetting news, and we encourage anyone who requires support to please reach out for help &#8211; it is available and can make a difference.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">Matt&#8217;s older brother, Jonathan, had battled bipolar disorder, and died in 2009, while his younger sister, Rachel, lived with schizophrenia, <a data-ylk=\"slk:The Sydney Morning Herald;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas;cpos:6;pos:1;\" data-yga=\"{&quot;yLinkElement&quot;:&quot;link&quot;,&quot;yLinkElementType&quot;:&quot;article_link&quot;}\" href=\"http:\/\/smh.com.au\/national\/nsw\/why-this-hero-is-throwing-a-lifeline-to-the-mentally-ill-20110514-1encl.html\" class=\"link\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer nofollow\" target=\"_blank\">The Sydney Morning Herald<\/a><a data-ylk=\"slk: reported;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas;cpos:7;pos:1;\" data-yga=\"{&quot;yLinkElement&quot;:&quot;link&quot;,&quot;yLinkElementType&quot;:&quot;article_link&quot;}\" href=\"http:\/\/smh.com.au\/national\/nsw\/why-this-hero-is-throwing-a-lifeline-to-the-mentally-ill-20110514-1encl.html\" class=\"link\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer nofollow\" target=\"_blank\"> reported<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p><img alt=\"Matt Dee on Bondi Rescue\" loading=\"lazy\" width=\"960\" height=\"640\" decoding=\"async\" data-nimg=\"1\" class=\"rounded-lg\" style=\"color:transparent\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/https:\/\/d29szjachogqwa.cloudfront.net\/images\/user-uploaded\/matt-dee_8361.png\"\/><\/p>\n<p>Matt was on Bondi Rescue between 2007 and 2015.<\/p>\n<p> (Channel 10)<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">These deaths left a profound impact on Matt&#8217;s life, and he dedicated himself to helping others battling mental illness.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">&#8221;What happened was not their fault,&#8221; he told <a data-ylk=\"slk:The Sun-Herald;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas;cpos:8;pos:1;\" data-yga=\"{&quot;yLinkElement&quot;:&quot;link&quot;,&quot;yLinkElementType&quot;:&quot;article_link&quot;}\" href=\"https:\/\/www.smh.com.au\/national\/nsw\/why-this-hero-is-throwing-a-lifeline-to-the-mentally-ill-20110514-1encl.html\" class=\"link\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer nofollow\" target=\"_blank\">The Sun-Herald<\/a> in 2011.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">&#8221;They did their best to manage their illnesses. It wasn&#8217;t their fault.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">&#8220;They had a problem inside their heads. It&#8217;s something we don&#8217;t understand. How would we know what it&#8217;s like?&#8221;<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">He became an ambassador for the Schizophrenia Research Institute and started FTW Revolution in 2014.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">Yahoo Lifestyle has contacted Waverley Council for further comment.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">Mental health support for yourself or a loved one can be found by calling <a data-ylk=\"slk:Lifeline;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas;cpos:9;pos:1;\" data-yga=\"{&quot;yLinkElement&quot;:&quot;link&quot;,&quot;yLinkElementType&quot;:&quot;article_link&quot;}\" href=\"https:\/\/www.lifeline.org.au\/find-help\/online-services\/crisis-chat?gclid=CM7l3sGRla0CFQSFhwodmzMikw\" class=\"link\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer nofollow\" target=\"_blank\">Lifeline<\/a> on 13 11 14, <a data-ylk=\"slk:Mensline;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas;cpos:10;pos:1;\" data-yga=\"{&quot;yLinkElement&quot;:&quot;link&quot;,&quot;yLinkElementType&quot;:&quot;article_link&quot;}\" href=\"https:\/\/mensline.org.au\/\" class=\"link\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer nofollow\" target=\"_blank\">Mensline<\/a> on 1300 789 978, or the <a data-ylk=\"slk:Kids Helpline;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas;cpos:11;pos:1;\" data-yga=\"{&quot;yLinkElement&quot;:&quot;link&quot;,&quot;yLinkElementType&quot;:&quot;article_link&quot;}\" href=\"https:\/\/kidshelpline.com.au\/?gclid=EAIaIQobChMI8cP-gPm84gIVEQ4rCh0Jng4kEAAYASAAEgLcNPD_BwE\" class=\"link\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer nofollow\" target=\"_blank\">Kids Helpline<\/a> on 1800 551 800.Online support is available via <a data-ylk=\"slk:Beyond Blue;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas;cpos:12;pos:1;\" data-yga=\"{&quot;yLinkElement&quot;:&quot;link&quot;,&quot;yLinkElementType&quot;:&quot;article_link&quot;}\" href=\"https:\/\/www.beyondblue.org.au\/get-support\/get-immediate-support\" class=\"link\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer nofollow\" target=\"_blank\">Beyond Blue<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">Want the latest lifestyle and entertainment news? Make sure to follow us on <a data-ylk=\"slk:Facebook;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas;cpos:13;pos:1;\" data-yga=\"{&quot;yLinkElement&quot;:&quot;link&quot;,&quot;yLinkElementType&quot;:&quot;article_link&quot;}\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/yahoolifestyleau\" class=\"linkDecorator_linkStyle__yM-Nh link\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer nofollow\" target=\"_blank\">Facebook<\/a>, <a data-ylk=\"slk:Instagram, ;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas;cpos:14;pos:1;\" data-yga=\"{&quot;yLinkElement&quot;:&quot;link&quot;,&quot;yLinkElementType&quot;:&quot;article_link&quot;}\" href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/yahoolifestyleau\/\" class=\"linkDecorator_linkStyle__yM-Nh link\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer nofollow\" target=\"_blank\">Instagram, <\/a>and <a data-ylk=\"slk:TikTok;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas;cpos:15;pos:1;\" data-yga=\"{&quot;yLinkElement&quot;:&quot;link&quot;,&quot;yLinkElementType&quot;:&quot;article_link&quot;}\" href=\"https:\/\/www.tiktok.com\/@yahooaustralia\" class=\"linkDecorator_linkStyle__yM-Nh link\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer nofollow\" target=\"_blank\">TikTok<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p><script async src=\"\/\/www.instagram.com\/embed.js\"><\/script><script async src=\"\/\/www.tiktok.com\/embed.js\"><\/script><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Former Bondi Rescue star Matt Dee has died, his clothing company, FTW Revolution, announced on Wednesday. Matt worked&hellip;\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":588086,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[8],"tags":[289430,289426,91005,156,289431,289429,289427,30506,289428,111,139,69,38],"class_list":["post-588085","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-entertainment","tag-bondi-lifeguard","tag-bondi-rescue","tag-channel-10","tag-entertainment","tag-ftw","tag-ftw-instagram","tag-ftw-revolution","tag-matt","tag-matt-dee","tag-new-zealand","tag-newzealand","tag-nz","tag-top-stories"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/588085","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=588085"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/588085\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/588086"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=588085"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=588085"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=588085"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}