A friend of a woman who was fatally stabbed in the Bondi Junction massacre has broken her silence as she shares a message for the men who saved her baby.
Emma Van Der Waal learned of the death of her old friend Dr Ashlee Good when her colleagues began posting tributes to the beloved osteopath.
The new mother, 38, was one of six people killed by Joel Cauchi, 40, when he went on a stabbing spree inside the Westfield shopping center on April 13.
Mrs Van Der Waal said New Idea “She couldn’t believe” that her 10-year-old friend had been caught up in a massacre that shocked the entire world.
“All Ash ever wanted to do was find his soulmate and have a family,” she said.
She shared a message for the men who helped Dr. Good’s nine-month-old baby Harriet after the mother and daughter were injured.
‘I can’t get past the last part of what she would be thinking. She would have wanted someone to save her baby. That’s Ash… she was so selfless,” Mrs Van Der Waal said.
Dr Ashlee Good, 38, was one of six people killed by Joel Cauchi, 40, after he went on a stabbing spree inside Westfield Bondi Junction on April 13. Her baby was also injured.
People are seen hugging each other at a vigil on Bondi Beach for the victims on Sunday night.
Dr Good died shortly after arriving at St Vincent’s Hospital and her husband Daniel Flanagan arrived just in time to say a final goodbye.
Flanagan then rushed to Sydney Children’s Hospital, where her daughter was undergoing surgery. She has since been discharged from the hospital.
Van Der Waal said she wanted people to remember her friend for the person she was.
“Everyone had a special bond with her,” he said. ‘She was like a beacon of light and I think that’s why so many people are suffering. Ash will be greatly missed.’
A GoFundMe page has raised nearly $700,000 for Dr. Good’s family.
“Ash was a ray of sunshine and positivity in all aspects of his life and died a hero saving his young daughter from the most unspeakable evil,” said page organizer Steven Foxwell.
‘These funds are being raised for the benefit of Dan and Harriet to give them the freedom to move into the future without financial burdens or worries.
“We know that no amount of money will ever replace your presence in your lives and we thank you for your generous donations to date.”
The six victims who died at Bondi Junction (from top left): Yixuan Cheng, Ashlee Good, Pikria Darchia, Jade Young, Dawn Singleton and Faraz Tahir.
Shoppers Dawn Singleton, 25, Jade Young, 47, Pikria Darchia, 55, and Yixuan Cheng, 27, along with security guard Faraz Tahir, 30, were the other five victims killed .
Dr. Good and her baby were the first to be attacked by Cauchi and the first to be publicly identified after the massacre.
Cauchi stabbed 12 more innocent shoppers during the terrifying rampage before he was shot dead by NSW inspector Amy Scott.
Hundreds of people gathered at a candlelight vigil for the six victims on Bondi Beach on Sunday night, with Prime Minister Anthony Albanese in attendance.
Mourners held a minute’s silence to remember those killed at a vigil in Bondi Junction
Albanese said Australia was mourning “for all the years of joy they should have known and all the memories they should have had the opportunity to create”.
“The new life they would have lived here in their new country, the success they would have achieved in whatever career they would have adopted,” he said.
‘The happiness they would have created, the care they would have shown. The beautiful children they would have raised with so much love.’
Police hero Amy Scott also attended and was greeted with hugs from her colleagues as she arrived at the event full of emotions.
Westfield Bondi Junction resumed operations on Friday, almost a week after the attack.
