Jennifer Murnane O'Connor (Carlow-Kilkenny, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

First, I welcome Bobby's family, including his wife Helena, his sons Bob and Mark, his daughter Triona, his seven grandchildren and his siblings. Bobby was fortunate to have served as a Deputy for Carlow-Kilkenny, replacing his brother Liam, from 2007 to 2011, and then from 2015 to 2020. I know that Bobby was deeply committed to the people of Carlow-Kilkenny as a public representative. He was always very supportive of me. He was a great friend to my father, and they had many a drink together. Bobby was a proud Mullinavat man, very much a part of his community, and of course the biggest cheerleader for Ballyhale Shamrocks. He would have been so proud of the team this year. I am sure he was smiling down on them as they won their 12th senior club hurling title. Just as he did for his club, he gave a tremendous amount to the people of Carlow-Kilkenny over the years, and he was a champion on behalf of his people and his area. I hope we can all take some of that, because we all knew Bobby, and put it to good use in our own way by keeping a smile on our faces, making plenty of time for chat, keeping the graces without the airs as he did, and by always trying to be fair. Whatever we do, we should always fight the fight for the people of our counties.

See this speech in context