Vincent O'Dea had not one, but at least half-a-dozen guardian angels, who, working in shifts around the clock, performed miracles - warding off impending disasters, steering him safely up one-way streets, keeping irate executives at bay and rescuing lost causes.
As a youth, following his natural inclinations, he ran away from home to join Anew Mac Master's Travelling Theatre Company, only to be hauled home and nominated for a job in the bank. Irrespective of where he was or what he was doing, he never left the boards. Life became his stage and he played a thousand parts. He feared nothing and tackled everything, lacking that virtue beloved of bankers: "prudence". Loyal to AIB bank and loyal to his friends and colleagues, he traversed the country, bringing good cheer to many at ploughing championships, spring shows, festivals, literary awards, children's art competitions, GAA Club of the Year Awards, Macra na Feirme and Foroige sponsorships. The list goes on and on.
There was little he didn't turn his hand to or see opportunities in. He composed music - one of his songs, Christmas Candles, was recorded by Bing Crosby. He played piano, studied violin and viola; he wrote verse, penned many short stories and plays, and was runner-up in the Denis O'Sullivan Cup, a competition for Irish songs, at the Feis Ceoil. He even tried his hand in films, starring as an extra in The Blue Max with James Mason, and in a film with Ursula Andress, The Viking Queen. Having retired from the bank, he returned to his native county, Clare, where for many years he presented, in a rich and sonorous voice, a weekly programme of music and musings, Memories.
Vincent was never happier than out on a lake dapping for trout with a mayfly, or at a Munster Hurling Championship match in Cusack Park or Semple Stadium. He enjoyed discoursing late into the night with like-minded friends in the Arts Club and other favourite haunts. He was one of the dwindling number of characters that have graced the stage of Irish life - a man always in search of magic. The final act never happened, as quietly the curtain fell. May the angels who were continually at his side lead him to paradise.