Larry Smith, a respected columnist and media professional, died at his home on Sunday evening after experiencing chronic heart failure, his family said.
Smith, who began his journalism career as a reporter at The Nassau Guardian, was 67.
He wrote a weekly column titled 'Tough Call' for the Tribune newspaper.
Smith was a principal at Media Enterprises Limited.
His wife of 35 years, Joanne, said the family is shell-shocked.
"His loss is going to be seriously felt," she said.
Mrs. Smith, who is also a principal at Media Enterprises Limited, said she will miss interacting with her husband at home and at work. She said they started working together 33 years ago.
Smith's daughter, Kasey, was overcome with emotion. She said her father was very moral.
"He always looked out for other people," she said.
Smith founded the media company in 1984. Prior to that, he was a writer and editor with the Bahamas News Bureau.
He began writing 'Tough Call' in 2004.
Smith's long-time friend, Ed Field, said The Bahamas has lost a "champion for the truth".
The veteran talk show host said Smith never stopped caring.
"For over 35 years, Larry Smith and I had lively debates over thousands of issues," Fields said in a statement.
"Every debate ended with, 'good talking with you'. Since the dawn of social media, lots of our conversations started out with a quizzical text or message, which would evolve into a phone call.
"No call was less than 30 minutes and those moments created a mental oasis for both of us. At its base, journalism is about being inquisitive. If you combine that with caring, then you have the Larry Smiths.
"While many in our field may be driven by motives, like celebrity and volume of likes, Larry's motivation was propelled by a quiet anger epitomized in a phrase that was repeated in every conversation. 'But that is just not right', he would often say and his writing was targeted at correcting those wrongs."
Fields said Smith consistently presented properly researched issues for the Bahamian people to contemplate.
"His passing has created a vast void that journalists and opinion writers should strive to fill," Fields continued.
"So Larry for one last time, it was good talking with you, my friend."
Dr. Nicolette Bethel, writer, anthropologist and cultural activist, offered similar sentiments about Smith's writing style.
She said when she learned of Smith's death on Sunday night, she went to bed pretending that a report of it was a mistake.
"There are no words left," she said in an online post. "Others have already written their own tributes. Mine will take some time. But what I do know is that we, The Bahamas, will feel this loss."
Media Enterprises Limited Office Manager Stacey Treco-Hilton said while the entire office was in mourning, she was especially upset as she and Smith suffered from the same heart condition.
"We take the same medication," she said.
Treco-Hilton said she will remember Smith as a fun-loving guy with a heart of gold.
"When his family called me yesterday, they had to console me. Everyone knows the type of relationship I had with Larry. He was always messing with me. He used to call me the gravy queen because I was always cooking and I always brought enough lunch for the week. He was always in my food," she said laughing.
"Yesterday when I cooked, I made extra potato salad for him because I know how much he likes it. This is one potato salad he won't be eating."
Smith's wife asked friends to plant trees in tribute to him.
"Larry would really appreciate it," she said.
"We are green and we want others to be green too. If there's a spot that could use a nice tree, go ahead and plant one."
Smith's funeral will be held at the Retreat on Village Road on Saturday at 10 a.m.
He is also survived by another daughter, Aliya Carey.

Click here to read more at The Nassau Guardian