The Late Hannah Loughlin It was with genuine sadness that all her old school friends and those of a younger generation who had heard so much about her heard of the death of Hannah (Ann) Loughlin (nee Murphy) at her home in Bristol on Monday, May 7. Ann (even better known as Lani in her native Clonegal) was a native of St Brigid's Terrace, Clonegal, where she was born on September 26 1949, and even in her school years, Primary and Secondary, she had shown the dominant traits that were to bloom in later life, when, like so many others at that time, she left her native land in her late teens to find work in England. A lover of the outdoor life she was a keen sportswoman and made her name as such in her secondary school days in the FCJ Convent in Bunclody, when she excelled at camogie and hockey. Ann was never meant to be a loser and took the start of her life as an exile in England as just another challenge. It was in Kilburn, London that she met and married her husband, Danny Loughlin. (They would have celebrated their ruby anniversary later this year). The couple moved to Bristol (Ann sometimes said she felt nearer to home than in London and went on to run three of the cities best known Irish pubs - "The crown and Anchor", "The Black Horse", and "The Coach and Horses'. The thing was with Ann in charge they were more than pubs - they were the place to go to find a job - Ann always had her ear to the ground when a contractor was looking for workers, or when someone who had become estranged with the family at home in Ireland wanted to be reunited. Ann took her social position very seriously. In the words of Amelia Dunfort, the co-ordinator of Bristol's St Patricks Day Parade - 'There were times when someone from the Irish community died in Bristol with no relatives to contact Ann would do all in her power to track the family down. If she failed in her attempt to find a relative she would see to it that the person had a proper funeral even if she had to pay every penny out of her own pocket. She was one in a million with a heart of gold'. She had been a gifted camogie player and was one of the founders of, and driving forces, behind, the St Nicholas GAA Club. From the time of the foundation up to the present time they have won nine county titles and Ann often brought them to London for a game. On the day of her funeral building sites were deserted and the pubs failed to pen their doors as Bristol's Irish community turned out en masse for the funeral of the woman regarded as the 'Mother Figure' to the city's exiles. The members of her beloved St Nicholas GAA Club formed a Guard of Honour for her Requiem Mass. Ann is mourned by her husband Danny, her children John and Gillian, her Grandchildren Katie, Collie, Hannah, Conor, brothers Paddy and John, sisters Fran, Maureen, Pauline, Liz, Bab, Monica, Geraldine, aunts and uncles, nieces, nephews, and a huge circle of relatives and friends. Courtesy of The Carlow Nationalist 1st June '07 Tweet

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