Missing child advocate Ryce dead at 66

MIAMI BEACH, Fla., Jan. 22 (UPI) -- Claudine Ryce, a missing children advocate since the 1995 killing of her son, has died in Miami Beach, Fla. at the age of 66, her husband says.

Ryce's husband, Don, said following the kidnapping and death of the couple's 9-year-old son, Jimmy, Ryce became a determined advocate for missing children and other crime victims, The Miami Herald said Wednesday.

Ryce, who died Wednesday of an apparent heart attack, founded the Jimmy Ryce Center for Victims of Predatory Abduction as part of her advocacy efforts.

Don Ryce said his wife was determined to spread her message of hope and perseverance regarding their son's death, for which farmhand Juan Carlos Chavez, 28, was convicted.

"Her message was always: Teach your kids the ways they can protect themselves. It can be done," he told the Herald. "And you must never give up hope. Keep fighting.''

The newspaper said in addition to her husband, Ryce is survived by her sister, Patsy Ronemous; her brother, Benny Walker; and two stepchildren, Martha Elizabeth Ryce and Donald Theodore Ryce III.