James Andrew O'Loughlin

James Andrew O’Loughlin, 62, of Melrose, MA, may have died on January 5, 2026, but that cat had nine lives, at least, so who knows for sure?

Jim was born, in 1963, in Boston, with a rare type of chronic anemia and, thanks to a maverick doctor at Mass General, became the first child to survive this life-threatening condition. Thus, from childhood, this “case” for epidemiologists was also a celebrity, at least in the medical textbooks. Jim's health challenges necessitated a daily dose of a million meds, yet he never complained.

As a child, Jim did his chores. He did his homework. He was a nice guy and a cub scout and an altar boy who said “please” and “thank you” and walked little old ladies across the street, because Jim always did the right thing.

As an adult, when it came to politics, Jim did the left thing. He probably drove his friends and certainly his family nuts sometimes with the fervor of his politics. Recycle, or else. Ixnay the incandescent bulbs. Compost. Vote blue. Fk ICE and you-know-who.

Jim grew up in Bedford, NH (Manchester West High ’81), the fifth of seven children of Joseph and Theresa (Dunn) O’Loughlin, Boston transplants who pre-deceased him but instilled in their hillbilly brood the imperatives of patriotism and civic engagement and the allure of politics and travel and adventure.

Jim took these life lessons to heart. After college (UNH ’87, where he studied English and poli sci), he moved to Boston, volunteered for AIESEC and worked in the legal department at Gillette. A few years later, he ditched the 9-to-5 and relocated to Chile, to perfect his Spanish, tool around, teach English. Over the next half decade or so, he lived in Santiago, Buenos Aires, Sao Paolo, Lima and Bogota. Life was a thrill, not a yawn.

When Jim returned to Boston, he worked in real estate. Until his health began to fail. In 2020 he started losing his eyesight, the result of a lifetime of the heavy-duty meds that kept him alive yet took a toll over the decades. Nevertheless, he persisted.

Visually compromised, Jim lost the ability to work, to drive, to live alone, but not his humor or quick wit or obsessions with Golden Age Hollywood, the environment, social justice and civil rights.

Jim, who saw the world beyond “Jim,” died of stomach cancer and is now in… Heaven? Who knows. He deserved it but, as an atheist, thought that what matters most is our time on the planet.

James Andrew O’Loughlin is survived by sisters Meg (Hudson, NY) and Maria (and her husband, Tom; West Barnstable), brothers Joe (Newton), Michael (New York, NY) and Greg (Hudson, NY), as well as five nieces, two nephews, one great-niece and two great-nephews. His brother Matthew (Ft. Lauderdale) died in 2004.

At the request of the deceased, there will be no RIP-song-and-dance, just a private memorial service for friends and family. Donations in Jim’s memory can be made to the Carroll Center for the Blind, in Newton, or to BAGLY (Boston Alliance of LGBTQ+ Youth), in Boston.