Bishop James McLoughlin: In May 1992 for many in Galway, not least the priests of the diocese, and indeed where Catholic Church authorities generally in Ireland were concerned, James McLoughlin was the right man in the right place at the right time.
His quiet demeanour, his intimate knowledge of Galway and his being a native son, made him the ideal man to assume responsibility for the diocese when Bishop Eamonn Casey resigned.
Indeed he allowed the diocese 13 years of calm following the high-profile episcopacies of his two predecessors Bishops Casey and Michael Browne, neither of whom was from the diocese and both of whom were major figures in the Irish hierarchy.
Bishop McLoughlin was diocesan secretary in Galway from 1965, in which role he was the reserved, meticulous balance to both his flamboyant predecessors' grand, sweeping style.
In 1983 he became parish priest of the cathedral parish and proved himself a conscientious, caring and popular pastor, which came as something of a surprise as his background in teaching classics and administration would not usually be suggestive of a popular touch.
He was appointed bishop of Galway and apostolic administrator of Kilmacduagh and Kilfenora by Pope John Paul in February 1993 and ordained bishop the following month.
The priests of the diocese were, according to one man this week, "very, very happy to see him become bishop. He knew the diocese inside out and he was one of their own."
He was also popular with his colleagues on the Irish Episcopal Conference.
The attendance of 19 prelates, including a cardinal and three archbishops, at his funeral was testament to that.
He was well respected among his colleagues for his work as chairman of the Irish Bishops Conference finance and general purposes committee, as he had an excellent head for figures.
He did not have a high national profile, and avoided controversy. Indeed the only time he attracted national attention in recent years was when he criticised the media for keeping Bishop Eamonn Casey out of Ireland during a Galway Bay FM interview in September last year.
Explaining that Bishop Casey had visited him in Galway three weeks beforehand, he commented:
"He said that he knows that he is always welcome in Galway."
He continued: "The idea that the bishops are keeping Bishop Casey out of Ireland is the greatest rubbish, because the man is coming and going." he said.
"Quite honestly, it is the press that are keeping him out, the media."
He had excellent relations with the other Christian denominations in Galway, as reflected, in his usual colourful style, by the Church of Ireland rector of Galway and provost of Tuam, the Rev Patrick Towers, in a comment this week.
"His toleration for my own eccentricities was superb," he said, adding that Dr McLoughlin had always shown him great friendship and hospitality.
Dr McLoughlin retired as bishop only in July, and it is tragic that after so many years of active commitment he was allowed such a brief retirement.
The eldest of three brothers, he was born in 1929 at Cross Street in Galway, where his parents ran a small wholesale grocery business.
He attended the Patrician Brothers primary school in Nun's Island and then St Mary's College in Galway.
He studied for the priesthood at Maynooth and was ordained on June 20th, 1954. From 1954 he taught Greek at St Mary's College, where he developed an interest in basketball and drama.
He is survived by his brothers Fr Aidan OCarm and Dermot, his sister-in-law Joan, nieces and a nephew.
Bishop James McLoughlin: born April 9th, 1929; died November 25th, 2005